Central Housing, Lands and Surveys to resurvey Cane Grove to fix challenges

Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Hon. Susan Rodrigues says the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) and the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC) will review the layout of Estate and Coconut dams at Cane Grove to solve drainage issues there.

Minister Rodrigues and Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Hon. Deodat Indar, met residents Tuesday to discuss issues affecting them.  After the meeting, the Ministers conducted a walk-about the community for a first-hand look at the challenges.

Speaking to DPI, Minister Rodrigues said, “The concerns that were highlighted to the Ministry of Housing and Water is to have the area of Estate dam and Coconut dam resurveyed because what we have here is people occupying their lots in ways that block the drainage network and therefore, every time it rains the area is severely flooded.”

The Minister also noted there is no equitable distribution of land in the area, since the community began as a squatting area.

“The last survey that was done was an occupational survey meaning however the people occupied, the plan was drawn to facilitate the occupation. now, that [has] resulted in several drainage issues so we have to sort that out,” she added.

The CH&PA and the GL&SC will resurvey the area so that drainage matters could be addressed before the community is handed over to the Neighbourhood Democratic Council.

Minister Rodrigues urged the residents to support the process.

“There is a lot of encroachment on the reserve and people are going to need to do some readjustments to their boundaries.

If the entire community is to benefit from good drainage and good roads, we have to make sure that the reserve is maintained so that we could have a proper drainage network, and so that we could build out the roads in this area,” she said.

Meanwhile, Minister Indar inspected the roads and assessed the works currently being done.

“From the market, straight down, the entire road is in a mess. There is a section of the road that is being done right now by Talbot construction, two kilometres heading to the front, from there to come back there are some weak bridges and the condition of the road is bad, getting worse.

I’m here really with the engineers to deal with the design and costing of the road because we intend to go for funding to build the road out here, proper road,” he said.

The Minister also noted that works for roads in Black Bush Polder, Canal Number One and Two and Zeelugt will also be taken to Cabinet for redress.

“Government is coming to the people. We are here, two Ministers on the same day to deal with a whole host of issues and we have a follow up mechanism and a follow through mechanism.

So, over the next couple of months you will see, that this very road and so on, all of these things that were raised have been actioned out,” Minister Indar said.

The Ministers were accompanied by representatives of the Guyana Power and Light Incorporated, the Guyana Water Incorporated and others.