Delhi flood situation expected to improve tomorrow i.e 16 July: Ashwini Kumar

New Delhi:An important press conference discussing the flood situation in Delhi was held at the NDMC Convention Centre on Saturday. Ashwani Kumar, Revenue Secretary and Divisional Commissioner, presided over the meeting. In this meeting, he stated that the situation in the flood-affected areas of the national capital is also improving. The water level in Delhi's Yamuna River is receding, and heavy rain is not expected in the city or upper catchment area.

Sharing the information during the conference Ashwani Kumar of Delhi Government said,as the water level in the Yamuna River started receding steadily. We have observed the water level dropped by roughly five centimetres, and the situation could improve further by tomorrow i.e. till Sunday. He further stated that there are currently 44 camps in Delhi, some of which are in schools and others of which are temporary setups that we intend to relocate to school buildings only. So far, a total of 25,478 individuals have been evacuated, and 22,803 have been relocated to camps.

According to Kumar, the Yamuna's water level was 207.43 metres at 11 a.m. today and would drop to 206.72 metres at 11 p.m. tonight.In response to a query, he stated that once the water level falls below 205 metres, the situation would return to normal.He added, The receding trend will persist since there is no sign of precipitation in the upper regions.

"Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister, has assured that residents in the city would be able to get some respite in the coming hours. However, the flood risk is not completely over", he added.The flow rate from the Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana's Yamunanagar has been declining for the previous two days, and more drop is likely to occur. At the same time, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasts moderate rain in Delhi during the next 4-5 days.He further added that the national capital of Delhi is dealing with a flood-like situation as a result of recent heavy rainfall in northern states and increased flow of the Yamuna river. Floods have disrupted several low-lying communities along the river, causing traffic delays.

On the accusation of not obeying the order of Delhi government ministers, he expressed dismay over opposition parties targeting government officials who are working "tirelessly" to bring the flood situation in the city under control. He added that baseless allegations should not be leveled against the officers. This diverts the attention of the officers. Also, this is not the time to do politics but to support each other.

Then he said that after steadily rising the water level in the Yamuna for three days, it began to fall on Friday. The water level has dropped to 207.43 metres at 10 a.m. on Saturday, compared to 208.66 metres at 8 p.m. on Thursday. However, the Yamuna is still flowing two meters above the danger mark of 205.33 metres.

When asked about the claims of the Water Minister, Saurabh Bhardwaj claims that senior Delhi officials, including the Divisional Commissioner, have not responded to his calls and messages in which he requested assistance from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to repair a damaged water regulator at Gate No. 12.Due to the damaged regulator parts of central Delhi including the Supreme Court, Rajghat and ITO were flooded on Friday.In response, Kumar stated that the NDRF has expertise in rescue and rehabilitation operations and had suggested using the Irrigation and Flood Control Department's resources to fix the regulator.

On being asked another question, in which elhi's Revenue Minister Atishi penned a letter to Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar on Saturday, expressing worry over the lack of basic facilities such as drinking water and toilets at relief camps.She also alleged in her letter that the Divisional Commissioner was not answering her calls. Kumar, on the other hand, stated that he is responding to Atishi's call and has spoken to her even today. I'm not sure why she said this. He called Atishi's behaviour "unfortunate" and said it was politically driven.In terms of Delhi's water supply, Kumar stated that the Okhla water treatment plant, which is currently working at 50 percent capacity,even on saturday. He hoped that the water treatment plants in Wazirabad and Chandrawal will be operational by Sunday.