LUCKNOW: Holding her sandal in one hand and extending her other arm to orderly for support in order to walk in the knee-deep filthy water on a unmetalled surface, 45-year-old divisional commissioner Roshan Jacob was the first non-khakee officer from Lucknow administration to reach Dilkusha area at 4am.
The proactive steps of the 2004 batch IAS officer were appreciated by residents as well as social media users.
Roshan — who hails from Kerala — had been alerted about the tragic death of nine people, including three children and three women.
Drenched in flood waters, the DC, along with Lucknow Municipal Corporation commissioner Indrajit Singh and additional municipal commissioner Pankaj Singh continued to visit other locations in the city in order to check the ground reality for the next nine hours.
Visuals of her — in knee-deep flooded streets — interacting with residents of flooded residential areas such as Jankipuram, near Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, Faizullahganj and Riverfront Colony went viral.
Roshan supervised the LMC roping in heavy pumping machines, which were used to pump out water from streets into drains.
Later, she directed LMC to prepare a detailed project report for enhancement of the pumping station in Jankipuram, Tedhi Pulia and instructed LDA to expedite construction of drainage systems which were already approved.
Mohsin Hussain tweeted, “Incredible. Officers sitting in AC rooms should learn how to work for the betterment of people from Lucknow DC Roshan Jacob.”
Rajesh Pandey of Jankipuram, whose area was flooded with rainwater, said, “Have seen officers sitting in cars to listen people 's grievances and do nothing at all, but over here a divisional commissioner level officer is not only walking through filth but actually executing task on ground.”
Roshan was earlier lauded for her efforts during the second wave of Covid for strengthening hospital and oxygen supply systems along with food arrangements for needy ones
Meanwhile, district magistrate Suryapal Gangwar conducted a review of Gomti barrage and took stock of the pumping station of Gaughat area.
During his spot visit in the city on Friday, he instructed that all community and primary health centers will remain open round the clock.
He directed Lucknow Electricity Supply Administration to be on standby in order to repair the breakdown of power supply in the city.
The district magistrate office has also issued emergency service phone numbers on which residents could seek help to clear water and collapsed trees and walls.
Helplines are 9151055671 / 9151055672 / 9151055673
