While the Capital’s roads remain clogged with Delhiites battling knee-deep water and gridlocks in the aftermath of heavy rain, the blame game has already begun. Blaming Public Works Department (PWD) for not doing the needful, the three civic agencies on Monday said most of the roads that were waterlogged come under PWD.
North MCD Mayor Sanjeev Nayyar conducted an inspection from Nangloi till Tikri Border and said none of the points out of almost 20 points visited were found to be de-silted. “During the inspection, it was found that PWD drain adjacent to Delhi Police Residential Colony and A-Block in Nangloi is not desilted at all. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation is taking best possible steps to minimise the water-logging during monsoon season but the PWD Department has not desilted many of its drains till now. The Corporation had to put up a pump set at the drain after the heavy rain last Saturday at the spot so that the citizens don’t have to face any inconvenience and to ease the traffic movement,” he said.
“The situation of water-logging in the area is due to the Delhi Government’s ill-preparedness as the drains falling under the Corporations are almost de-silted and that too before the monsoon season but most of the bigger drains which belong to PWD or Irrigation and Flood Control department are not de-silted which are outfall for smaller drains,” added Nayyar.
The city on Monday witnessed heavy traffic jams due to water-logging on several busy intersections leaving motorists stuck for hours. Several areas — Ashok Vihar, Jasola, Okhla, IIT Gate, Chelmsford Road towards Paharganj, Ring Road Sarai Kale Khan towards DND, Sarita Vihar, Defence Colony, INA, Rajghat towards ITO, Aurbindo Marg, Anand Vihar, Wazirbad — were waterlogged following incessant rains on Saturday morning.
leader of the House South MCD Subhash Arya “challenged” PWD Minister Satyender Jain and said, “Most of big roads are under the jurisdiction of PWD and the PWD Minister can show whether we haven’t de-silted the drains. I am ready to resign if they can show we have not desilted, and he should resign if PWD roads not found desilted.”