Lieutenant-Governor Tejendra Khanna has asked civic agencies and stakeholders to prepare a masterplan for Delhi’s watershed and drainage system. The order comes in the wake of the embarrassing shutdown that the Capital witnessed after the July 27 downpour.

While, the Irrigation and Flood Control department will be the nodal agency, Engineers India Limited (EIL) — the agency that is also executing the work of laying interceptor sewers under the Yamuna Action Plan in Delhi — has been chosen to execute the Drainage Masterplan.

“The L-G has given in-principle approval for preparation of a masterplan for Delhi’s watershed and drainage solution. The IFCD has been requested to be the nodal agency for preparing the master plan; and EIL will be the executing agency,” said Ranjan Mukherjee, Officer on Special Duty to the L-G.

After the July 27 rainfall brought the city to a halt — most major drains were choked, water flowed into people’s houses in several areas and traffic jams ran into kilometres — Khanna had asked all stakeholders, including the traffic police, for a status report on July 28. “The EIL has been asked to prepare inception draft for the masterplan within two months. The final feasibility report will be submitted by them in 18 months,” a senior Raj Niwas official said.

“It is important for Delhi to have a complete drainage solution in the aftermath of the rains on July 27. Such a situation was faced by us for the first time after 1970,” said Irrigation and Flood Control Minister Raj Kumar Chauhan. “Our work will start only after the EIL is done with drawing the masterplan.”

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