NEW DELHI: Water Minister Atishi, in a written communication to Delhi chief secretary, on Thursday said the city has been plunged into a ‘living hell’ by a manufactured financial crisis at the Delhi Jal Board.
She raised the issue of “sewer overflow” at many places. There was no immediate reaction from the chief secretary’s office. According to an official statement, Atishi personally inspected affected the areas following several complaints and said it is now the chief secretary’s responsibility to resolve the crisis. She also noted that this kind of sewage overflow is a breeding ground for several diseases, which can plunge the national capital into a serious public health crisis.
Atishi said she visited Mohan Garden D Block, A-Extension Mohan Garden and DK Road in Uttam Nagar on Wednesday after getting repeated complaints from residents regarding sewer-related problems. The minister added that she had been informed that on numerous occasions, local residents and the area MLA, Naresh Balyan, had sent grievances to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
“These grievances also reached me via emails and social media.”
‘Release funds’
Atishi asked CS to ensure the release of funds to the DJB from the budget that has been allocated to them within the next 48 hours and to take the strongest possible action against all officers responsible for creating this “artificial fund crisis”