Delhi govt plans to remodel 300 km of drains in line with drainage master plan

The Delhi government plans to remodel 300 kilometres of drainage network in the next financial year, under the first phase of the new Drainage Master Plan, officials said on Tuesday.

Designed to meet the city’s drainage requirements over the next 30 years, the Public Works Department (PWD) unveiled the much-awaited drainage master plan for Delhi in September last year.

“In a recently held budget-related meeting, it was decided that 300 km of drainage system revamp work will be carried out this year, for which budget requirements will be sent to the government,” a government official said.

The plan suggests implementation in five years across the city in two phases, aiming to reduce waterlogging episodes by 50 per cent in the next three years and flood-related accidents by 30 per cent in the next five years, at the estimated cost of Rs 57,362 crore.

PWD has already sanctioned a few drainage remodelling projects in waterlogging hotspots. According to officials, these works will be carried out as per the suggestion in the master plan.

“Tenders have been floated for the Azadpur project, Mehrauli-Badarpur road, Nangloi and Khanjawala areas. The focus is on planned drain remodelling across connected stretches so that long-standing infrastructure gaps are resolved in a systematic manner,” the official added.

In North Delhi’s Model Town-II, Model Town-III, and Kushal Cinema Road, a similar drain remodelling project has been taken up by the PWD, for which a fund of Rs 48.13 crore has been approved. Other roads are being identified, he added.

The drainage master plan takes into account factors such as slopes, depressions, and the limitations of the existing infrastructure to enhance drainage efficiency, thereby creating a roadmap for the future.

The Delhi government has also earlier announced several works being undertaken by the Irrigation and Flood Control Department to improve rainwater drainage. These include the revamp of 13 drains and the construction of 18 roads and bridges.

The last drainage Master Plan for Delhi was prepared in the year 1976, when the population was 60 lakh. Currently, PWD maintains 2152.88 km of drains in the city.