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Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘No polluter will be spared': Delhi PWD minister announces crackdown on industrial discharge into Yamuna river
Delhi Public Works Department (PWD) and Water Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh on Friday ordered a city-wide crackdown on the discharge of illegal sewage and industrial waste into the Yamuna, kickstarting an enforcement campaign to tackle water pollution in the capital. Calling untreated sewage discharge a 'crisis that can no longer be ignored,' Singh directed all departments concerned to begin immediate inspections across Delhi's industrial and commercial establishments. 'No polluter will be spared. We will act — and act fast,' the minister was quoted as saying, in the statement issued by the PWD on Friday. According to the statement, the drive will target all establishments legally mandated to install and operate Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) or Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs). 'Comprehensive and time-bound inspections' are to be conducted to ensure these plants are both installed and functioning properly. The statement also noted that any non-compliance would invite strict legal action under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. Emphasising a 'zero-tolerance' policy, the PWD said penalties would be enforced 'with no exemptions or delays'. The Water Act allows for fines and imprisonment for discharging pollutants into water bodies without treatment or consent. A real-time e-dashboard will be developed to track inspection status, record violations, and monitor corrective measures. Departments have been directed to submit bi-monthly compliance reports to the minister's office to ensure regular monitoring and accountability. The minister also stressed that 'departmental coordination is key' and called for 'seamless coordination among all enforcement and technical departments' to eliminate delays and ensure timely action. The crackdown comes amid longstanding concerns over the pollution levels in the Yamuna. Despite previous clean-up plans and multiple deadlines, large volumes of untreated waste continue to flow into the river, especially from unregulated industrial clusters and unauthorised colonies, as per government records. 'This is not a symbolic act. It is a matter of survival and legacy. Delhi must rise to this challenge,' Singh said. The enforcement drive begins with immediate effect, said the PWD. High-risk zones and habitual defaulters will be prioritised. Citizens have also been encouraged to report instances of illegal discharge through local helplines or municipal channels.
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.
Indian Express
7 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
NDMC organises Suvidha camp, receives 125 public grievances
Around 125 public grievances were received at the routine Suvidha Camp organised by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) at the NDCC Convention Centre on Saturday (June 14). The camp was held from 10.30 am-12.30 pm. The nature of most of the grievances pertained to the personnel, civil engineering, horticulture, public health, enforcement, commercial, tax and estate departments. Alongside, many of the NDMC area residents visited the camp to get information regarding their various other civic services. Officials of over thirty departments were present and seated around the table, where people came and discussed the problems, while the officials explained the process and time required for the resolutions. The camp organized on every first Saturday of the month looks into the problems related to new electricity connection or disconnection, load enhancement or reduction, name change or transfer, property tax, birth and death certificate, service matters of serving and retired employees of NDMC, Water logging, Sanitation, Waste Disposal, Road repairs, pension schemes, and any other services offered by NDMC. Apart from organising the Suvidha camp, the civic body has also launched a 'Jan Suvidha Portal' as a contactless grievance redressal mechanism for the residents and service users of the Council. The portal can be used for lodging the grievance, tracking its status and giving feedback on the redressal mechanism. The link to the same is available on the Council's portal. Complaints can also be raised through social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram. Earlier this week, the council in its meeting chaired by MLA and member of NDMC Parvesh Sahib Singh had announced many policies for the residents including replacement of old cables in various locations, focus on night cleaning and sweeping, desilting of Sunheri drain at Lodhi Road before monsoon, and replacement of the remaining 15,312 mechanical meters with smart water meters in NDMC areas.
Indian Express
14-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Flyover connecting North Delhi and Ghaziabad: PWD to carry out feasibility study
To provide smooth connectivity between North Delhi and Ghaziabad, the Public Works Department (PWD) has proposed an integrated transit corridor development project. The department has invited bids to carry out a feasibility study for constructing a 6-km-long elevated corridor under this project, starting from Nanaksar Gurudwara T-Point in Northeast Delhi's Sonia Vihar Pusta Road to the Delhi-UP corridor near Tronica City. According to officials, the stretch currently falls under the jurisdiction of the Irrigation and Flood Control Department (I&FC), but as the PWD is the expert agency executing roads and flyovers, the department will hire an agency to carry out the feasibility study. Currently, the 6-km-long stretch is plagued by encroachment by the roadside and traffic snarls caused by vehicles, e-rickshaws, and pedestrian footfall. 'It was a long-pending request from residents… development of an elevated corridor will ease traffic movement for commuters and residents… The stretch passes through a densely populated area, which also has a market… Also, there are trees on both sides of Pushta Road… a Delhi Jal Board (DJB) underground water pipeline also falls on the route… all of this will be taken into consideration during the study,' said officials. The DJB's Sonia Vihar treatment plant is located near the alignment of the proposed flyover. In April, PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh, along with Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra, inspected the stretch and announced the project. Officials said it is likely to cost approximately Rs 500 crore.
Indian Express
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
MHA nod awaited for renaming Talkatora Stadium, says Minister
The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) is awaiting clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for changing the name of Talkatora Indoor Stadium to Maharishi Valmiki Stadium and will be passed in the next council meeting once it is approved, Public Works Department (PWD) Minister and NDMC Chairman Parvesh Sahib Singh said on Thursday. 'I have talked to Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The proposal is pending with him. Whenever it gets cleared from there, we will pass that in the next NDMC council meeting,' Singh told reporters after the civic body's council session. The announcement to rename the Capital's oldest indoor facility came during the campaign by the BJP for the Assembly elections held earlier this year. Singh, who was contesting against former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi Assembly constituency, had made the announcement. Soon after he took oath as an NDMC member, he had promised to rename the stadium after Maharishi Valmiki, the author of the Ramayana. Built in 1974, the stadium derives its name from the adjacent Mughal-era garden. 'Talkatora' originates from two Persian words: 'tal,' meaning a tank, and 'katora,' meaning a bowl-shaped natural depression. The stadium is known for hosting some of the biggest sports, cultural, and political events. For the name change, the proposal has to go through various steps, made in accordance with the guidelines provided by the MHA. According to NDMC procedures, a name-change request must be submitted to its General Administration Department. After which, the proposal is then placed before its 13-member Council for approval. Once passed, it is sent to the Delhi government's Urban Development department for final clearance. Following the council meeting on Thursday, NDMC vice-chairperson Kuljeet Chahal said that the BJP government is committed to fulfilling its promises. 'The council is underway to get clearance, more shall be discussed in the next meeting,' he said.
