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Indian Express
5 days ago
- Climate
- Indian Express
Ahead of monsoon onset in Delhi, PWD misses another deadline to desilt drains, 40% work pending
Ahead of the onset of the monsoon, the Public Works Depart-ment (PWD) has failed to meet its second deadline to complete desilting drains across Delhi. According to the latest status report, only 60.47% of the total 2,140.91-km of PWD-managed drains were desilted, as of Monday. The desilting work was originally scheduled to be completed by May 30, as per the Delhi government's plan but the department was granted additional time, with PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh announcing June 15 as the revised target during a site inspection earlier this month. Despite this extension, progress has remained behind schedule. Senior officials acknowledged the delays but did not offer explanations. Navin Kumar Choudhary, Additional Chief Secretary for both the PWD and the Irrigation and Flood Control Department (the nodal agency for desilting), said that progress varied widely across zones. He added that updates were being regularly shared with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Chief Secretary Dharmendra. With pre-monsoon showers already hitting parts of Delhi and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) expecting an earlier-than-usual monsoon onset, the city, if not fully prepared, could see waterlogging and flooding in vulnerable areas. The Southwest monsoon is expected to hit the city between June 19 and June 25. While monsoon preparedness in Delhi was one of the key poll promises of the BJP during its Assembly election campaign earlier this year, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has repeatedly said that her government is trying to ensure waterlogging-free Delhi this monsoon. The official report shows that out of the 2,140.91 km of drains, 1,294.60 km had been cleared by Monday. While smaller drains have seen moderate progress, several major ones—large in both capacity and urban impact—remain only partially cleared. For example, as per the report, the Shahdara Road drain, which handles high volumes of runoff and spans a sizeable width of over 1,800 mm to 3,000 mm, has seen only 72.92% desilting so far. Similarly, desilting at the East Road drain, another high-capacity conduit, stood at 62.25%, and the North Road (NR) drain, one of the city's longest and largest, is just 52.66% complete. While SWR-2 drain in Southwest Delhi achieved 100% desilting, as per the report, other key stretches such as WR-2 and NWR-2 are languishing at 31.91% and 36.38%, respectively — despite being part of Delhi's core drainage infrastructure The city had set a seasonal target to remove 2.26 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of silt from 77 major drains. As of May 29, 1.42 lakh MT had been cleared—about 62.81%. The total silt removed as of Monday stood at 23,190 MT. Despite the PWD's claims of action on a 'war-footing', the pace and uneven progress can hamper the city's ability to withstand heavy rain — especially in flood-prone pockets like Mehrauli, Okhla, and Shahdara. Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa had earlier told The Indian Express in an interview that long-term neglect and poor management by the previous AAP government had created a lot of backlogs, as well as an increase in the time taken to complete several key projects.
Hans India
25-05-2025
- Climate
- Hans India
Delhi L-G hails efforts of Rekha Gupta govt to make drains rain-ready
Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) V.K. Saxena on Sunday commended the efforts of the Rekha Gupta government to desilt drains and focus on preparing the city's drainage system to handle rainwater flow during the advancing monsoon. In a social media post accompanied by videos showing rainwater flowing in large drains, the L-G said, 'The morass set in due to neglect of more than a decade will take considerable time getting fully sorted, but the new government's efforts at governance are indeed gratifying.' In a special appreciation for the Irrigation and Flood Control Department, headed by Minister Parvesh Verma, Saxena said, 'It's encouraging to see the Irrigation & Flood Control Deptt striving to make our drains flow & mitigate waterlogging, amidst heavy unexpected rains. The consistent efforts of Hon'ble CM Smt @gupta rekha vide field visits & monitoring have started showing results.' The L-G's words of praise coincided with Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva lauding the government for preparing the city for monsoon. Sachdeva stated that while sudden storms and monsoon-related waterlogging have been regular occurrences in Delhi every year, the situation till last year was worsened by the negligence of the then-government. However, this situation has significantly improved now. Sachdeva said that when Delhiites woke up this morning, they were faced with multiple complaints of fallen trees and waterlogging due to a storm that hit late last night. Following the instructions of CM Gupta, all BJP MLAs and councillors, along with officials from the Delhi Jal Board and Public Works Department, took to the streets. 'By 9 a.m., most trees had been cleared and much of the waterlogging removed, easing traffic across the city. By noon, the situation had been brought under control,' he said. After every spell of rain, the people of Delhi can clearly see the difference between the former Arvind Kejriwal government and the current BJP-led administration, he said. Sachdeva emphasised that while the Kejriwal government used to blame the L-G and officials for waterlogging and leave citizens in the lurch, the BJP government takes responsibility and, after thunderstorms or rain, works actively with officials and staff to normalise the situation.
Indian Express
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Delhi mega cleanliness drive: Over 3,500 km of MCD roads cleaned, encroachments removed
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Friday released its zone-wise progress report on the 20-day mega cleanliness drive which was launched by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on May 1. All 12 zones of the corporation were covered under the drive that comprised cleaning, encroachment removal, and issuing of challans. As part of the drive, the MCD has cleaned over 3,500 kilometers of roads — the highest amount of cleaning was done in the Rohini Zone, followed by Najafgarh, Karol Bagh, and South Zone, Gupta said in a statement. 'The 'Swachh Delhi' initiative by the Delhi government is receiving tremendous support from the citizens of the capital. The latest figures released by the MCD shows that this comprehensive cleanliness campaign is delivering remarkable results on the ground,' Gupta had said in a statement. A total of 11,131 challans were issued against encroachments, with West Zone recording the highest number of 2,994 challans. Additionally, 5,932 illegal materials were seized, and 186.5 kilometers of roads were cleared of encroachments. Gupta said that to address water-logging issues during monsoon, comprehensive cleaning of the MCD drains was carried out — 19,892.38 metric tonnes of silt has been removed so far. As of May 21, the Irrigation and Flood Control Department removed 13,72,276 metric tonnes of silt from 27 drains in Delhi, with instructions to complete the removal of the remaining silt by May 31. Gupta shared that several stray animals have been transferred to various gaushalas and stray dogs vaccinated against rabies, while unauthorised dairies were sealed in Najafgarh and Keshav Puram. The CM shared that, on an average, 33,809 sanitation workers and other related personnel participated actively in the campaign daily. The government has also identified 4,139 dark spots and rectified them, repaired 4,140 streetlights and installed 285 new lamps to ensure proper lighting. Additionally, 283 Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) were engaged through interactive meetings aimed at empowering citizens' participation in cleanliness. In busy commercial areas, a night-time cleanliness drive was conducted in 418 major markets and removed 37,628 illegal posters, 8,399 banners and 3,917 hoardings from public walls, poles, and hoardings. Besides, 30 walls have been beautified with cleanliness based artwork and cultural themes. Efforts such as grass cutting, removal of unauthorized encroachments, elimination of illegal posters, and repair of damaged roads, management of construction and demolition (C&D) waste were amongst the tasks carried out in a similar cleanliness drive that was carried out in all 14 circles of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).
Indian Express
04-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Indus Waters Treaty suspension revives hopes for completion of stalled J&K lake project
The suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) has revived hopes for the completion of a stalled project to rejuvenate the Jhelum-fed Wular lake — one of India's largest freshwater lakes — in Jammu and Kashmir's Bandipora district. This project, about 2.5 km upstream of the similarly-stalled Tulbul Navigation Lock Project (also known as the Wular Barrage Storage project), was started by the then state government's Irrigation and Flood Control Department in 2013 at an estimated cost of Rs 30 crore. Like the Tulbul project, this, too, was held up amid arguments from Pakistan that it violated the IWT. With the treaty now in abeyance following the Pahalgam terror attack, the Union government is planning to hand over the project to state-owned hydropower company NHPC Ltd, which will likely pick up the construction work from where it was left off, it is learnt. Among the suggestions on the table is for the Union government to fund it. Sources said that the Wular lake project came up after the Union government sought details of projects in the Union Territory that would be affected by the treaty's suspension. These projects were discussed at a meeting involving Union Home Ministry officials where the decision to give the Wular project to the NHPC was taken. The project aimed to maintain water levels in the Wular lake during the summer, curb encroachments, and mitigate flooding. Sources said it included construction of 2.5-km long flood protection bunds along the lake and a spillway, and strengthening the lake's embankments. Wular lake, which contributes nearly 60% of Jammu and Kashmir's fish production, has been shrinking due to sedimentation, plantation, agricultural activity and encroachment. It is also learnt that the Jammu & Kashmir government will likely suggest the revival of the Tulbul Navigation Lock Project to the Union government, besides putting forward a request for a project that allows J&K to draw some water from Chenab to feed Jammu city. Officials in the J&K government said work on the Tulbul project had started way back in the 1980s and the foundation on the barrage is ready. 'You just have to put the gates. This will allow some water to be held in the Jhelum. It will raise the level of Wular lake, and raise the level of Jhelum upstream,' said an official, who declined to be named. About the second proposal, the officials said this was a project that the J&K government under CM Omar Abdullah was keen to take up with Asian Development Bank funding. 'But Pakistan got China to scuttle it,' the official quoted above said. According to the officials, even if the Union government later restores the IWT, it can seek status quo on what has been done in the interim when the treaty was in abeyance. India and Pakistan have held several rounds of talks on the Tulbul project. In Pakistan's perception, the project structure is a barrage with storage of around 0.3 million acre feet and India is not permitted to construct any storage facility on the main stem of the Jhelum, according to an answer in Parliament in August 2006 by then Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz. The Indian side had then maintained the structure was not a storage facility but a navigation facility as defined in the 1960 IWT. 'Further, Wular Lake gains natural storage and the navigation lock is merely a structure to regulate the outflow from the natural storage to facilitate adequate depth of water for navigation during the winter months from October to February,' it has said. – WITH ENS inputs
