Groundwater rise threatening E Delhi: Jal Board

Pointing to an abnormal rise in the pressure of sub-soil water in East Delhi,the Delhi Jal Board has acknowledged that this has had an adverse effect not only on its sewer lines but also buildings and roads in the area.

Warns abnormal rise in pressure affecting sewers,buildings,roads

Pointing to an abnormal rise in the pressure of sub-soil water in East Delhi,the Delhi Jal Board has acknowledged that this has had an adverse effect not only on its sewer lines but also buildings and roads in the area. The Jal Boards admission comes days after a building collapsed in Lalita Park,killing 70 people.

An abnormal rise in groundwater level and its pressure during the monsoon this year have adversely affected our sewerage system,hitting important joints in our lines and resulting in their collapse. This in turn is affecting roads and buildings, said Ramesh Negi,Chief Executive Officer of Delhi Jal Board. As a short-term measure,the DJB is acting on complaints and replacing affected patches. But in the long term,we need to strengthen our system in the entire floodplain, said Negi.

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On the Lalita Park incident,where groundwater had accumulated in the basement of the building that collapsed,Negi said the nearby DJB Ranney Well had a capacity of just five cusecs and could not have added to the groundwater in the area. It is just a big borewell used to supply groundwater in case of scarcity. Since Lakshmi Nagar enjoys piped water supply these days,the Ranney Well has not used for long. And logically,soil erosion is faster in areas where there is over exploitation of groundwater,which was not the case here, Negi said.

Before the monsoon,sub-soil water in the area was 8-9 metres deep. Post-monsoon,the area has seen a sharp rise in the level of sub-soil water. Now,basements in the area,which are only 2-3 metres deep,are flooded with this sub-soil water. These structures have not been designed for a condition like this. We can say there can be a repeat of such an incident if building structures in such areas are not rectified, said V P S Tomar,Chief Engineer of the Flood Department.

He,however,said structures even on the riverbed can withstand any amount of flooding if they are constructed keeping in mind characteristics of the soil and are designed for adverse conditions.

The embankments have not been flooded this time. This is sub-soil water,seeping through the ground. Floodplain zone restrictions dont mean you can stop underground water from seeping in. It is

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important that any residential building in areas close to the river is built on a design approved by a competent architect, Tomar added.

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