CM’s department cannot cope with water-logging

NEW DELHI, June 30: The downpour today brought the usual problems of waterlogging in its wake. A day after full statehood for Delhi was appr...

NEW DELHI, June 30: The downpour today brought the usual problems of waterlogging in its wake. A day after full statehood for Delhi was approved, the Jal Board which looks after the main sewage system in the city and is under the direct control of the Chief Minister, was unable to deal effectively with clogged drains.

Trilok Singh, a resident of Vijay Nagar was electrocuted this morning as water flooded roads and residential colonies. Complaints poured in from all areas. In fact, the 12 Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) control rooms have already received 208 complaints of water logging.

Affected areas were Baljeet Nagar, Mori Gate, Subhash Nagar, Janakpuri, Vasant Kunj, Lajpat Nagar, Tagore Garden, among others. P.D. Pandey, a resident of Janakpuri complains: “In the morning there was a foot of water in my house. On the roads there was three feet of water and vehicles had their headlights under the water surface.”

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Sewage water has been overflowing from the toilets in the ground floor flats of residents in Janakpuri and nearby areas. In many localities, residents from the ground floor have moved up to the first floor since there is ankle deep water inside their house. A number of residents also complained that no arrangements had been made to clear the water.

MCD Commissioner V.K. Duggal’s field inspection today highlighted the unpreparedness of the administration in wake of the monsoons. North-West and North-South areas have been identified as the worst affected by the heavy downpour today.

Even as the officials tried to salvage the situation, Delhi Pradesh Congress president Shiela Dikshit harshly criticised the government. Water-logged roads, choked drains and sewers, filth reaching the kitchens of the houses and traffic jams — that is how Delhi greeted the monsoons, thanks to the BJP government’s ineffectiveness, she said in a statement.She said that if the situation did not improve, the DPCC workers will be forced to come out on the streets and `gherao’ the BJP leaders.