MCD is monsoon-ready, almost

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) claims 90 per cent of its drains have been cleared of silt.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) claims 90 per cent of its drains have been cleared of silt.

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Its councillors, however, say a lot remains to be done.

Municipal commissioner K S Mehra claimed that this year, the corporation had stepped up preparations well in advance to tackle the problem of water-logging that grips the city every monsoon season.

“We have been clearing drains regularly throughout the year as opposed to the earlier practice of seasonal desilting during April and May-end,” Mehra said.

Municipal councillors, who wanted to know the MCD's preparedness, were not satisfied with the commissioner's response. They said the ground reality in their wards was quite different.

“My ward, Chauhan Bangar in Shahdara North, has only 11 nallah beldars (cleaners). It is not enough to carry out the cleaning work,”Congress councillor Razia Sultana said.

BJP councillor Meera Aggarwal said Delhi Jal Board sewers that pumped out dirty water often ended up overflowing storm-water drains and this should be looked into.

The MCD had facing a lot of criticism for the potholed roads and overflowing drains during last year's rains.

Some councillors demanded a plan for each ward and separation of the sewerage and drainage system.

Mehra said the MCD was satisfied with their efforts.

"This is an ongoing process. Usually, water-logging happens when drains are blocked by plastic bags or other material. But this year, we plan to start a drive to clear drain mouths," he added.

The MCD has sanctioned Rs 20 crore to clear the drains of silt this year.

According to the civic body's statistics, 1843.5 metric tonnes of silt has been removed from drains and dumped in various sanitary landfill sites.