Taman Kinrara Batu 7 ½ and the surrounding area of Kinrara Court in Puchong, close to the Bohol flood retention pond, was flooded on March 7 last year. — Filepic
RESIDENTS living in and around the Bohol flood retention pond area in Seputeh, Kuala Lumpur, breathed a sigh of relief over news that the development project will not take place.
However, the stakeholders want more than just a commitment from the authorities to gazette the ponds; they want the land surrounding the pond area to be gazetted too.
“We also want proof that once the pond is gazetted, an announcement will be made public,’’ said Taman Kinrara Batu 7 ½ Residents Association chairman Alvin Lee.
“There must be full disclosure over the matter; no more doing things secretly,’’ he said.
Association secretary Dinesh Kumar concurred, adding that their neighbourhood had suffered major flooding on Dec 18, 2021, and last year on March 7.
“My house was flooded, and my car was damaged. I had to throw away so much furniture from last year’s flood that was a result of Sungai Kuyoh that flows into the Bohol pond overflowing due to heavy rain,’’ Dinesh said.
The pond spanning 37.8ha (equivalent to 63 football fields) is located near Kampung Muhibbah in Kuala Lumpur, Taman Kinrara in Selangor and along the Shah Alam Expressway (Kesas).
Subang MP Wong Chen, who has been helping the Kinrara folk in cash and kind after the devastating flood, hoped the government would look into gazetting all retention ponds and its surrounding areas.
“Gazetting the pond itself is not enough. They must gazette the lands around it so that it will be off limits to developers who are eyeing such lands,’’ he said.
Some 130 families in the area suffered between RM20,000 to RM30,000 in losses each and are still awaiting the compensation of RM5,000 as promised back then by the Federal Government.
Over at Kampung Muhibbah, resident Yap Ah Foo, who is a carpenter, said he lost thousands of ringgit in the Dec 18 floods.
“I have never experienced such bad floods before and this was the first big one that had caused a lot of damage to me,’’ he said, adding that he hoped the authorities would not allow any more development in the area.
The floods in 2001 and last year caused water from the Bohol pond to overflow and flood Taman Kinrara, Kinrara Court and Kesas.
The overflow was due to Sungai Kuyoh breaking its bank after a downpour.
Taman Kinrara Batu 7 ½ and the surrounding area of Kinrara Court in Puchong, close to the Bohol flood retention pond, was flooded on March 7 last year. — Filepic
Lee says residents are happy that the development project has been cancelled.
Dinesh lost thousands of ringgit during the Dec 18, 2021 floods.
