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L-G, Atishi rap Chief Secy. over civic ‘infrastructure collapse’, sewage overflow
Saxena, Water Minister write to Naresh Kumar, pull him up for floods in parts of city, choked sewer lines; AAP says L-G is merely repeating what the ‘elected govt.’ has pointed out several times already
The drain in Ghazipur where a 23-year-old woman and her son, 3, drowned after a heavy spell of rain.
| Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA
Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar on Monday came under severe criticism from Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena and Water Minister Atishi on the issues of overflowing drains and “the complete collapse of civic infrastructure” in Delhi during the monsoon.
In a letter to Mr. Kumar, Raj Niwas said the “underlying problems (of infrastructural issues) are symptomatic of endemic neglect” and a “complete absence of senior management oversight” in the city.
“Drains have not been de-silted for years; sewer lines are choked, leading to flooding even in planned colonies. Hon’ble L-G believes that this points to a complete absence of senior management oversight,” read the letter by Ashish Kundra, Mr. Saxena’s Principal Secretary, to Mr. Kumar.
On the other hand, the Minister said she had received complaints about sewage overflow from many parts of the city.
“The problem of sewage overflow is also causing contamination of drinking water, which could lead to a serious public health crisis if not resolved immediately,” she said.
Ms. Atishi asked the Chief Secretary to “mobilise the entire government machinery” to prevent a public health crisis.
Mr. Saxena and the Minister asked the Chief Secretary to assign specific responsibilities to senior officials and ask them to conduct periodic ground inspections.
Field inspections
“It would help them obtain a first-hand feel of the core problems being faced by citizens and take corrective policy or regulatory measures. The Chief Secretary shall circulate a uniform format of inspection report to all departments and submit a monthly report on the number of inspections done by each officer,” read the letter by Raj Niwas. It added that all the heads of departments (HODs), Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, and Additional Chief Secretaries need to “draw up a schedule of field inspections” and ensure thorough inspections. The L-G also sought monthly inspection reports from Mr. Kumar.
Ms. Atishi asked the Mr. Kumar to deploy 11 senior officials, one for each of the Delhi Jal Board’s circles.
“A team of officers to be attached to each senior IAS officer who will remain on the field to find short-term and long-term solutions to sewage overflow and water contamination-related issues,” she said. The Minister asked Mr. Kumar to monitor the officials’ work personally and sought bi-weekly progress reports from him.
Nothing new: AAP
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also took potshots at the L-G over his letter to Mr. Kumar, saying he was merely repeating what the “elected government” had pointed out several times already. “The Urban Development Minister (Saurabh Bharadwaj) had directed the Chief Secretary to submit the timelines for de-silting drains by various agencies. But, instead of ensuring de-silting, the Chief Secretary was busy making excuses for not submitting the timelines,” the party said in a statement.
It added, “There is video evidence and written official notes to prove that the favourite officers of the L-G had knowingly contributed to misgovernance and corruption in de-silting contracts. The L-G has not yet taken any action against the Chief Secretary or any of the HODs who failed in their duties.”
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva accused the Delhi government of shirking its responsibilities.
When reached for comment, Raj Niwas did not respond.
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