Delhi extends Desilting Deadline to June 30

New Delhi: With the monsoon around the corner, the Public Works Department (PWD) of the Delhi government has extended the deadline for desilting of the city drains to June 30.  The department had earlier set the target by June 15.

In a written reply to a question asked by Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta in the Assembly, PWD Minister Satyendar Jain on Friday informed the House that the other preparations done by the department to handle waterlogging in the city were the deployment of temporary and permanent pumps, maintenance vans along with cleaning of the bell mouth openings.

As of June 1, the department has not even completed 25 per cent desilting in 70 per cent of the sites.  Of the 1,036 roads under the PWD, on 726 roads the work done is only up to 25 per cent. Only 87 sites have been completely cleared, according to a PWD report. "In all the drains, 20 to 50 per cent desilting is done, and the work is in progress in all the areas," Jain informed the house.

The PWD has identified 157 water logging locations on the basis of previous experience during the monsoons. It will deploy temporary pumps, maintenance vans and labour to avoid waterlogging in these sites. 

The Traffic Police has also identified 370 vulnerable water logging locations, of which 312 comes under the PWD and remaining 58 pertain to other departments. A total of 143 maintenance vans will be deployed across the city with 34 in East, 60 in South and 49 in the North zone.