Delhi sets up dedicated silt disposal site to tackle monsoon flooding, drain choking

As Delhi struggles with waterlogging and drain overflows every monsoon, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has set up a dedicated silt disposal site on reclaimed landfill land to manage desilted waste from across the city.

The new silt disposal zone has been set up at the Shinghola reclaimed site, where 7.6 lakh metric tonnes of legacy waste were biomined to free up 6.61 acres of land, according to an official.

This newly available land is now being used as a centralised and environmentally safe location to dump and manage silt removed from drains and stormwater channels, the official said.

He also said that the silt disposal site is being utilised by multiple MCD zones, including Narela, Keshavpuram, Rohini, Karol Bagh, Civil Lines, City-SP, Shahdara South and Shahdara North.

Until now, the absence of a formal disposal mechanism for desilted material had been a major contributor to the re-choking of drains, as dumped silt often made its way back into the system or was left to pile up along roads, he added.

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With this new initiative, the MCD aims to streamline the entire drain desilting operation, ensuring not just removal but also proper and monitored disposal of silt.

The move will also help reduce the risk of flooding in critical low-lying areas, particularly during peak monsoon spells, he added.