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Ahead of monsoon, Delhi PWD identifies 7 key waterlogged spots for stricter oversight

Ahead of monsoon, Delhi PWD identifies 7 key waterlogged spots for stricter oversight

NEW DELHI: Ahead of the upcoming monsoon season, the Public Works Department (PWD) has identified seven 'perpetually' waterlogged spots within the city that require stricter oversight from senior engineering staff.
These spots include Minto Bridge, Pul Prahladpur Underpass, Ring Road opposite WHO, Jahangirpuri Metro Station Road, Under Zakhira Flyover, Loni Road Golchakkar and Karala Kanjhawla.
According to an official order dated April 28, seven critical locations will be directly monitored by the Engineer-in-Chief. Officers assigned to each location will be personally accountable for preventing waterlogging during the 2025 monsoon season. Any failure in timely action could invite disciplinary measures.
The move follows data provided by the Delhi Traffic Police, which identified 308 waterlogged points in 2023 alone, which reduced to 194 last year. However, based on new data from the Delhi Traffic Police, the number has risen to 445 in 2025, with 335 of those under the PWD's jurisdiction.
The remaining belong to other agencies. Assistant Engineers (AEs) and Junior Engineers (JEs) have been designated as site in-charges for each of the 335 PWD-managed points. They are tasked with overseeing drainage maintenance, equipment readiness, and on-site emergency response.
In a first, Project Engineers have also been appointed as 'Review Officers' for each point, with a mandate to supervise operations and submit regular reports. Pump operators will be deployed around the clock in three shifts, and temporary shelters will be arranged for them to ensure rapid response during rainfall.
As part of broader drainage upgrades, Delhi has been divided into 35 zones for desilting operations. So far, 50 kilometres of drains have been cleaned, with a target to desilt 1,400 kilometres by May 31.
The desilting effort is being coordinated among multiple civic agencies.

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