Union Minister for Housing and Urban Development, Manohar Lal Khattar on Friday issued directions to the state authorities to prepare a plan for constructing a storm water drain from Gurugram to Palwal so that rain water can be diverted to Yamuna river and frequent waterlogging could be prevented.
Khattar issued these directions during a meeting with senior officials from the Gurugram metropolitan development authority (GMDA), department of town and country planning (DTCP), public works department (PWD), Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) and district administration at PWD guest house in Gurugram, a district administration spokesperson said.
Khattar, who has served twice as Haryana chief minister and is well versed with the problem of waterlogging in the city, directed the officials to prepare this plan within a month.
During the meeting, the union minister emphasised upon the limited capacity of the Najafgarh drain, and asked officials to explore new options to find a permanent solution to Gurugram’s problem of waterlogging. Khattar said that a new drain to the Yamuna in Palwal district could be a key solution and asked officials to work on it.
“The Centre has agreed to work on a new project to permanently address the problem of waterlogging in Delhi and Gurugram,” he said.
Khattar also held extensive discussions with the officials on the proposal and asked them to prepare a plan within one month for construction of the drain, taking into account topography and geography of the drain’s route. “It is suggested that the entire area be studied, considering the natural flow of water as well as the option of lifting it in the hilly areas,” he said.
Khattar also directed the irrigation department officials to jointly prepare a detailed study report for this project within a month, so that it can be presented at the upcoming NCR planning board meeting.
He also stated that he would personally review the progress of this work within the next 15 days. He also directed the preparation of a report on the reservoirs built on government land in Gurugram and surrounding areas.
To be sure, Khattar was the chief minister of Haryana when Gurugram witnessed a massive flooding in August 2016, which is known as Mahajam as the city remained gridlocked for almost two days due to waterlogging. Gurugram has been witnessing waterlogging every year since 2016 and the civic authorities have not been able to resolve the issue.
PWD minister Narbir Singh, who was present in the meeting said that the proposed drain will also ensure water availability in Nuh district. “This will provide a permanent solution to the waterlogging problem in Gurugram city,” he said.
Senior officials present in the meeting included principal advisor urban development DS Dhesi, GMDA CEO Shyamal Mishra, director, DTCP Amit Khatri and senior officials from Gurugram.