Delhi: PWD blames MCD as Okhla landfill sewage damages key stretch

PWD blames MCD for damage to Ma Anandmayee Marg due to sewage overflow and poor management at Okhla landfill, creating unsafe driving conditions.

The public works department (PWD) has said the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD)’s poor management at the Okhla landfill site and frequent overflow from its drains are causing repeated damage to the arterial road Ma Anandmayee Marg in south-east Delhi, which connects the Outer Ring Road near Kalkaji to the Mehrauli-Badarpur (MB) Road.

The road is also plagued by the heavy movement of MCD trucks carrying garbage and the stray cattle menace. (RAJ K RAJ /HT PHOTO)

The agency has written multiple letters to the civic body stating that sewage overflow mixed with silt from the Okhla landfill is causing damage to the road and creating “unsafe driving conditions” for motorists.

The road is also plagued by the heavy movement of MCD trucks carrying garbage and the stray cattle menace. Commuters say the Ma Anandmayee Marg stretch remains a traffic nightmare, especially during peak hours.

Ramanjot Sethi, a commuter travelling towards Nehru Place from MB Road, said the poor maintenance of Ma Anandmayee Marg reflected a systemic failure. “The damaged road, unauthorised car and truck repairs, trucks parked on the carriageway, thick dust in the air, and most of all hordes of cows near Govindpuri and the Okhla industrial area — this arterial stretch shows failure at every level. Are they waiting for accidents to happen?” he said.

A parallel artery to NH-19 connecting Okhla-Sukhdev Vihar to Tughlaqabad, Ma Anandmayee Marg caters to commuters passing through Kalkaji, Govindpuri, Tughlaqabad, Okhla and nearby areas towards Faridabad. The road also handles hundreds of vehicles and trucks carrying municipal waste from south Delhi areas to the Okhla landfill and the Tehkhand waste-to-energy plant.

One of the letters from PWD (subdivision SER-1) to the MCD executive engineer states that multiple communications have been sent, through which “the issue of outflow of dirty water mixed with silt from SLF Okhla site on Maa Anandmayee Marg has been brought to their notice”.

“However, the problem still persists and no remedial action has been taken at site. Due to continuous discharge, the nearby drain is repeatedly getting choked despite regular cleaning, resulting in deposition of silt and water on the carriageway. This is creating unsafe driving conditions and causing further deterioration of the road surface,” the letter adds. PWD has asked the MCD to identify the root cause and ensure permanent rectification of the problem.

MCD officials did not respond to queries on the matter.

PWD had undertaken a traffic volume survey of Ma Anandmayee Marg, which revealed that the road has a traffic volume exceeding 10,000 PCU (passenger car units) per hour. This often increases further during the peak hour between 9.30am and 10.30am.

Earlier, HT had reported that leakages from a nearby reservoir were also damaging Ma Anandmayee Marg. PWD had written to the Delhi Jal Board in December and January, urging it to address the leakage source and compensate PWD for recurring repair work on the road.

“Due to constant leakage of water from the Delhi Jal Board facility near ESI Hospital, the Ma Anandmayee Marg maintained by the Public Works Department is getting damaged… We are once again requesting you to take steps to plug the leakage source. Otherwise, the Delhi Jal Board will have to bear the expenses for carrying out repair work on the damaged road,” the note said.

The issue, the DJB said, has since been rectified.