Drains being cleaned to check waterlogging in Gurugram

To ensure that the underpass at Hero Honda Chowk does not get flooded this monsoon, the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway concessionaire has deployed high-capacity pumps and 70 workers to clean the drains between Rajiv Chowk and Kherki Daula.

Last year, the backflow of water from Badshahpur drain in Khandsa village, where the drain’s width reduced from 30 metres to just 10 metres, had left the Hero Honda Chowk underpass inundated.

A government committee formed last year had observed that failure to desilt these drains had led to flooding at the junction.

After heavy rain on August 28 last year, seven fire tenders and five motor pumps were deployed non-stop for 43 hours days to pump out 50 million litres from the underpass and open it for traffic.

Chief executive officer of the Millennium City Expressway Ltd (MCEPL) S Raghuraman said they have deployed seven pumps of 10 horse power (HP) capacity and four pumps of 20 HP at the Hero Honda Chowk and other flood-prone spots along the expressway.

“We have also deployed three earthmovers, three tractors and four water tankers, besides 70 workers to ensure drains in this stretch along the expressway are desilted and all garbage is removed,” he said, adding the work would be completed before June 30. The monsoon is expected to arrive in Gurugram in the first week of July.

MCEPL officials said the new pumps will have the capacity to remove water at the rate of 6,000 to 7,000 litres per minute.

Apart from the NHAI, the GMDA, which is responsible for upkeep of the city’s drainage system, is also working to clean drains downstream from Hero Honda Chowk towards Umang Bhardwaj Chowk and up to Basai Chowk to prevent any eventuality in case of a heavy downpour. GMDA officials said this master drain will be cleaned within the next week.

A GMDA official said a tender of around Rs1.9 crore has been allotted for cleaning the master drain and those in the sectors. “The authority has also set up a six-inch-high speed breaker at the mouth of the underpass to prevent water from entering and pooling inside,” he said.

In another development, state PWD minister Rao Narbir Singh, who had directed the PWD and the MCG to clean drains along Behrampur village on Monday expressed dissatisfaction with the work done as he found silt and garbage still blocking the drains. Singh has now directed officials to complete the work by June 26 so that stormwater does not cause flooding in the area along the highway.

First Published: Jun 21, 2019 02:23 IST