Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Thursday convened a review meeting to take stock of the preparations ahead of the monsoon season and warned that any laxity by officials will not be tolerated. According to an official statement, a sump of 7.5 lakh litres capacity and a 600 horsepower permanent pump house is being constructed at Pul Prahladpur underpass to do away with waterlogging problem there.
Similarly, Minto Bridge underpass will be equipped with an automatic pump to prevent waterlogging. A stormwater drain and a 1.5 lakh litre capacity sump will be constructed on IP Estate Ring Road to solve the inundation problem there, it said. The statement said these measures will provide relief to commuters from waterlogging in monsoon at these places.
“Micro-level planning by the Arvind Kejriwal government is being done to solve waterlogging. Preparations will be completed before the monsoon and any laxity by officials will not be tolerated,” Sisodia said in a statement. He said the Delhi government is ready with an action plan for places with severe waterlogging issues and construction of sump, storm water drain and high-capacity pump houses is in progress.
The minister also directed officials concerned to take all preventive measures by the end of May to prevent any inconvenience to the public. According to the statement, unlike every year, Delhi had received up to 110 mm rainfall per day last year which led to serious waterlogging issues in many areas. The Public Works Department (PWD) has identified 147 hotspots of waterlogging and has started working on them, it said. Many severe waterlogging incidents were reported from Pul Prahladpur underpass last year.
This year to prevent any such situation, PWD is constructing an underground sump of 7.5 lakh litres capacity and permanent pump house of 600 horsepower. “The construction work of the underground sump and pump house will be completed by the end of May. Along with this, seven temporary pumps will also be installed here, which will have a total capacity of 500 horsepower,” the statement said. The statement said at Zakhira underpass, the work of modification of the drain in the area is also going on at fast pace. Also, the storm drains coming from Nehru Nagar/Anand Parvat will be rerouted.
Action plan to prevent waterlogging near the Jahangirpuri Metro Station includes the construction of a drain along with service road and reconstruction of old storm water drain between the main road and Mukarba Chowk bound along with the main road towards Ramgarh and Mahendra Park, the statement said. A permanent pump house will also be constructed there, it said. “The work of desilting of storm drains in Delhi is also going on. The deputy chief minister has directed the officials that the desilting work of all drains should be completed before May 31,” the statement added.
With PTI Inputs
