NEW DELHI: This monsoon, Delhi commuters won’t have to risk drowning to cross the waterlogged Minto Bridge underpass. The Delhi government’s Public Works Department (PWD) plans to develop an “independent drainage” for the underpass to make it “water-logging free”.
Located in the heart of Delhi, the heritage bridge is infamous for water-logging, cave-ins and heavy congestion during the rains.
A 56-year-old man, Kundan Kumar, had died last year after his truck was submerged at the underpass.
The PWD wants to conduct a conditional assessment study of the existing drainage near Minto Road before taking further action, said an official.
“The problem lies in the natural gradient of the land. The heritage bridge cannot also be easily re-engineered. Besides, the larger issue is Delhi’s choked and dysfunctional drainage system,” said a senior PWD official.
The solution could lie in a modified drainage system during the monsoon in the midst of low-lying areas near Minto Road. The PWD has also floated tenders for consultancy services for developing the independent system for the underpass. It will also conduct a detailed assessment of the existing drainage system at Minto Road, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (DDU) Marg and its catchment areas and prepare a feasibility report.
The department has identified locations of the drainage system at the two areas where sewer lines of various measures exist. The selected consultancy will find out reasons for water -logging by studying rainfall, the Highest Flood Level (HFL) in the catchment area, the capacity of the existing pumping station and the proposed drainage system to avoid water logging in future.
Besides, the topographical survey of the catchment area of Minto Road (1 km) and DDU Marg (2 km) will also be conducted for determining stormwater/sewer discharge, the alignment and manhole locations. It will also include conditional assessment of the existing pipelines by specialized equipment.
Official sources said the consultancy work is targeted to be completed in three months after the award of work. The actual civil work is likely to be completed before the monsoon. Due to heavy water logging during the monsoons, the underpass is usually closed for traffic as DTC buses, auto-rickshaws and other vehicles get stuck.
Clearing the water-logjam
PWD has floated tenders for consultancy services for making the Minto Road underpass and DDU Marg ‘water logging free’.
