Civic bodies step up measures as Delhi welcomes monsoon

With monsoon expected to arrive in Delhi by the end of this month, various agencies are putting last-minute touches to their plans to handle waterlogging in the city.

Heavy to very heavy rain is likely in the national capital on the weekend, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said as parts of the city were lashed by showers on Thursday, bringing Delhiites much-needed respite from heat.The monsoon current could arrive in Delhi by the end of this week, bringing relief from the prevailing sultry conditions, private weather agency Skymet forecast on Wednesday.

The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has set up six control rooms equipped with over 160 pumps to ensure that Lutyens' Delhi does not face waterlogging.

According to officials, CCTV cameras have already been installed at all the waterlogging hotspots in the area. 

The feed from these cameras will be monitored through the day at the Integrated Command Control Centre at Palika Kendra, they said.

The civic agency has identified five vulnerable points of water stagnation -- Africa Avenue, Baba Kharak Singh Marg, Panchkuian Road, Purana Quila Road and Lodhi Estate -- on the basis of feedback from public and traffic police officers.

"The drainage control rooms have been set up at Sangli Mess, Khan Market, Netaji Nagar, Malcha Marg, Mandir Marg and Connaught Place. 

These will be manned by senior officers and will function round the clock to address waterlogging complaints," an official said."There are 99 permanent pumps for draining out water and 62 temporary pumps," he added.

Apart from the setting up of control rooms, the focus of the agency is also on desilting of drainage system, the official said, adding that it will be completed by June 30.

There are 14 drainage systems across the NDMC area and the length of transverse drainage line is 270.82 km.

The Public Works Department, which has a major chunk of roads under its jurisdiction, said they have repaired the permanent pumps and temporary pumps have been procured to drain out water.

"The Delhi Traffic Police had identified 308 locations that had witnessed waterlogging last year. There are 214 locations under the PWD. Out of these, there were around 40 locations that required engineering intervention for ensuring that there is no waterlogging. At other places, maintenance work, like cleaning of bellmouth, removing of debris, etc, was required," the official said.

The CCTV cameras have been set up at waterlogging hotspots and they will be monitored by a control room. 

The feed from these cameras will also be available on the cellphones of the concerned area officials and they will be able to keep tabs on whether there is waterlogging.

The department will also be deploying maintenance vans and teams to move in Delhi during monsoon.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has completed almost 95 per cent of desilting work."The MCD has completed approximately 95.46 per cent of work for desilting of drains till date. 

Their target is to complete this work by June 30. 

MCD has a total of 20,884 drains that are less than four feet deep across its 12 zones and 713 drains that are more than four feet deep. 

The cleaning of these drains are done at the departmental level and through tender process, respectively," a department official said.

The civic body has set a target to remove 1,27,368 metric tons of silt in two phases under its action plan for the year 2024-2025. 

In the first phase, the target to remove 78,062 metric tons of silt was set till June 15. 

In the second phase, the target to remove 49,305 metric tons of silt is set till January 15, 2025.The silt released during cleaning from all the drains has been disposed at sanitary landfill sites at Bhalswa, Okhla and Ghazipur. 

The concerned department ensures that the silt taken out from the drain is picked up within three to five days and sent to the landfill site, the official said.

The concerned departments of MCD ensure cleaning of drains before monsoon. 

The civic agency has 72 permanent pumping stations and 465 portable pumps. 

Rain water is drained through water pumps at waterlogged sites, the official said.

Delhi battled one of its worst flood-like situations in several pockets last year because of heavy rain, with more than 25,000 people evacuated from the inundated areas.