With several parts of the city experiencing waterlogging due to heavy rains, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia today held a high-level meeting to review the situation and directed all agencies concerned to conduct joint inspections and submit reports by tomorrow.
At the meeting, it was decided that the helpline number, recently launched to complain about waterlogging, will function 24x7.
"Dial 1077, 24x7 Helpline for registering complaints regarding water logging is functional now. Kindly register your complaints. Directed all agencies to conduct joint inspections at severely affected areas & submit reports by tomorrow (sic)," Sisodia tweeted.
The Public Works Department (PWD) which is in-charge of 1,260 km roads in the national capital, was put on the dock as a number of areas was waterlogged leading to traffic jams.
As many as 50 officials, including those from PWD, DMRC, New Delhi Municipal Council, all three civic bodies, Revenue department, Urban Development department, Delhi Cantonment Board and DJB, attended the meeting. PWD minister Satyendar Jain and Water minister Kapil Mishra were also present.
Officials told Sisodia that construction works by agencies like DMRC, National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC), are causing waterlogging, mostly in south Delhi.
The Deputy Chief Minister directed officials to take strict action against any department or individual for negligence of duty.
It was pointed out that waterlogging in and around AIIMS flyover is due to the ongoing construction work by NBCC. He directed the sub-divisional magistrate of the area to issue challans against the NBCC.
A senior government official said several areas in south Delhi were waterlogged and government has asked DMRC, PWD and South MCD to conduct a joint inspection on the worst-affected area and submit their report by tomorrow.
"The report to be submitted by different agencies will be studied by the government. If construction work by any agency is found to be causing waterlogging, it will be prosecuted by the area SDMs," he said.
In the morning, south Delhi was the worst hit with severe traffic congestion due to waterlogging at the stretch between IIT-Delhi and Munirka, Moti Bagh, Chirag Delhi, Saket, Modi Mill, Moolahchand, South Extension, Yusuf Sarai, AIIMS, Lodhi Road, Andrews Ganj, Greater Kailash, Nehru Place and Jasola.
Civic agencies had traded charges and indulged in a blame-game over desilting of drains when a similar situation was witnessed in the national capital on Saturday morning.
Water stagnated mostly in the mouths of flyovers, underpasses and low-lying areas, giving commuters, especially office goers, a harrowing team in the peak morning hours.
