The Public Works Department of the Delhi government has geared itself up with a detailed action plan to ensure that no recurrence of last year’s monsoon situation happens in the capital this time. The department has worked to distinguish vulnerable spots in the NCT region and discover possible solutions to them.
The Public Works Department, under Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, drafted the action plan and checked upon the statuses of the sump construction, stormwater drains, and high capacity pump houses located at critical points with chances of waterlogging.
Last year, the capital suffered extreme waterlogging at 5 key hotspots, namely, Pul Prahladpur Underpass (Southeast Delhi), Minto Bridge & IP Estate Ring (Central Delhi), Under Zakira Flyover (West Delhi), and Jahangirpuri Metro Station (North Delhi). Overall, the capital had 147 waterlogging hotspots, identified by PWD.
In the Pul Prahladpur Underpass, a 7.5 lakh liters capacity underground sump and 600 HP permanent pump house is being constructed to handle the monsoon wading crisis. At Minto Bridge, PWD has worked its way by equipping the road with an automatic pump, a stormwater drain, and lastly, with the construction of a 1.5 lakh liters capacity sump, working to prevent waterlogging and allowing commuters easy passage from the bridge.
Under the Zakira Flyover, PWD plans to modify the current drain system around the underpass while rerouting the stormwater drains coming from Anand Parbat and Nehru Nagar. At IP estate ring road, 9 pumps will be installed with an added construction of 1.5 lakh liter sump, giving relief to the commuters from the every-year seen extreme waterlogging.
Lastly, PWD finds its way to solve waterlogging issues at Jahangirpuri Metro Station by constructing a drain, along with the service road and a permanent pump house near the metro station. The department also plans on reconstructing and remodeling the old stormwater drain, running between the main road and Mukarba Chowk.
The department is preparing for short-term and long-term strategies to prevent waterlogging even in the future. The 147 identified hotspots will be worked upon. Along with the strong drainage system, the newly appointed department in-charge Manish Sisodia has also instructed the department to make the capital’s roads pothole-free within one month.
As per the officials in PWD, the guided measure will likely be completed and put on working by the end of May to prevent public inconvenience. The preparations have been made and the Delhi government has taken an extra mile to make sure the problem of waterlogging is solved by the time monsoon arrives.
