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To check waterlogging, drills to be held at 16 spots in Gurugram
Gurugram deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav, said that the drills are crucial to testing preparedness ahead of the monsoons
Gurugram: The Gurugram district administration has come up with a plan to conduct drills at 16 different locations in the first week of May, officials aware of the development said. The plan has been designed to check how well the civic agencies are prepared to tackle the monsoons and what additional steps have been taken since last year to reduce waterlogging.
During these drills, various aspects such as preparedness of response teams, coordination among different departments, efficiency of communication channels, and the functionality of drainage infrastructure, will be evaluated. These mock drills, will help the authorities to identify any shortcomings in their response mechanisms.
Gurugram deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav, said that the drills are crucial to testing preparedness. “This practice ensures that everyone knows how to react quickly and work together in real-life situations. The roles and responsibilities are defined during the drills to evade any last-minute confusion amongst the civic agencies that deal with waterlogging,” he said.
Yadav said that organising drills shows how the district administration is taking proactive steps to deal with waterlogging problems. This approach helps the region stay better prepared in facing such challenges. “We have asked all the departments regarding the preparations being made this year at locations in Gurugram city where there was significant waterlogging during the previous monsoon. We have sought responses from each department regarding the solutions being implemented. They have been directed to check the drainage situation in the five sub-divisions of the district: Gurugram, Badshahpur, Manesar, Sohna, and Pataudi, to ensure that residents do not face any kind of inconvenience during monsoons,” he said.
Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) officials, as well as staff from the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) met the deputy commissioner to discuss plans for the mock drills on Tuesday. They said they will keep an eye on the drainage work to ensure Gurugram, Badshahpur, Manesar, Sohna, and Pataudi remain free from waterlogging this monsoon season.
GMDA officials said that five pumps have been installed at the waterlogging site at Narsinghpur on National Highway 48. “To address the waterlogging issue here, there is need for the construction of a new stormwater drain of approximately 190 meters. Similarly, two water pumps have been installed at Khandsa Chowk. After road construction is done from the Hero Honda Chowk to Sector 10 bus depot, drainage work has been planned at this point. At Rajiv Chowk, two pumps have been installed, and work has been assigned to the relevant agency to construct a new 1,600-meter water drain,” said a senior official.
At Tau Devi Lal Stadium, two pumps have been installed for water drainage. The MCG is working on a project from Dundahera for the construction of a water train. Adequate arrangements have also been made for drainage at the IFFCO Metro Station, said officials.
“The construction of connecting drains from Basai to Sector 104 near Dhobi Ghat, Sector 22-23, is pending, and work is being done in two phases, with 80% of Phase one completed. The second phase is yet to begin due to the expansion of the metro,” said Yadav.
During the monsoon season, many city areas get heavily inundated, with the Narsinghpur stretch of the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway and areas near Iffco Chowk Metro station remaining waterlogged.
