Advertisement
The Gulf conflict has disrupted global supply chains, pushed...
REITs have changed the way commercial real estate is owned a...
What does it take to preserve a real estate legacy while bui...
What really powers the cloud? Behind every Google search, A...
A lot of what defines a home isn’t visible at handover. I...
The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Wednesday publicly apologised to residents for rain-triggered waterlogging across several areas under its jurisdiction, following heavy rainfall on 25 August that inundated parts of the national capital, including its VVIP zones housing ministers, judges and senior bureaucrats. NDMC Chairman Manoj Kumar Dwivedi said the civic body normally clears waterlogging within 15 to 20 minutes, but water took over an hour to drain at three to four locations after more than 72 mm of rainfall fell in under two hours. He said the intense spell could not be treated as an excuse and pledged short- and long-term measures to make the entire NDMC area free of waterlogging, while inviting suggestions from residents.
The New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Wednesday issued a public apology to residents over rain-triggered waterlogging across several parts of the national capital that fall under its jurisdiction, following heavy rainfall a day earlier that left key roads submerged and commuters stranded.
NDMC Chairman Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, in a post on social media platform X, said the civic body was typically able to clear waterlogging within 15 to 20 minutes under normal circumstances. However, he said, at three to four locations on Tuesday, water took more than an hour to drain following the intense spell of rain. Delhi received more than 72 mm of rainfall in under two hours on 25 August, a downpour Dwivedi described as unexpected in its intensity.
"I sincerely apologise to everyone in the NDMC area who faced difficulties due to waterlogging instances on August 25," Dwivedi said, adding that while the heavy rainfall was unusual, it could not be treated as an excuse for the disruption faced by residents. He said the civic body would need to strengthen its systems to handle such situations going forward, and committed to a series of short- and long-term measures aimed at making the entire NDMC area "fully waterlogging free."
"We will work to ensure that our citizens should not face any inconvenience in future," Dwivedi said, while also inviting suggestions from residents on how to improve the drainage system.
The waterlogging drew heightened public attention after Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and BJP national president Nitin Nabin were seen wading through accumulated rainwater while arriving at Talkatora Stadium for an event, with videos of the moment circulating widely and intensifying scrutiny of the capital's drainage infrastructure. The NDMC area covers some of Delhi's most prominent administrative and VVIP zones, including localities that house central government ministers, judges and senior union secretaries, adding to the political sensitivity surrounding the lapse.
Dwivedi's public apology was noted as an unusual gesture among senior bureaucrats, with observers pointing out that officials rarely acknowledge shortcomings so directly on public platforms. The development followed recent remarks by Prime Minister Narendra Modi encouraging bureaucrats to engage more directly with citizens on social media and remain responsive to public grievances, a context some officials linked to the tenor of Dwivedi's statement.
The waterlogging episode in the NDMC area formed part of a broader pattern of drainage failures reported across Delhi during Tuesday's rainfall, with several underpasses, arterial roads and metro station approaches experiencing significant disruption. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi separately reported receiving a dozen complaints related to waterlogging within a few hours of the rainfall, along with additional complaints concerning fallen trees, reflecting the wider strain placed on the capital's civic infrastructure by the intense spell of rain.
Delhi's persistent waterlogging problem has drawn repeated criticism in recent years, with residents and civic bodies across the city citing ageing drainage infrastructure, encroachments on stormwater drains and inadequate maintenance as recurring contributing factors, even as authorities have periodically announced remedial measures ahead of the monsoon season.
The statement did not specify the exact short- and long-term measures NDMC intends to undertake to eliminate waterlogging in its jurisdiction, nor did it provide a timeline for implementing improvements based on the suggestions invited from residents.
Source- PTI
Advertisement
Facebook
Whatsapp
