Despite two days of incessant rains, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday assured that a flood-like situation is unlikely in the national capital and the government is fully prepared to provide relief to people. The CM said that the plan to evacuate people will be implemented if the water level in Yamuna crosses the 206 metres mark. Kejriwal further said that his government’s priority is to rescue people and it is working on a war footing to deal with the situation.
Addressing a press briefing, the AAP national convenor said if the need arises, the Delhi government will shift the people from low-lying areas to safe spots. His press conference came hours after Delhi Public Works Department Minister Atishi warned that the water level of the Yamuna River is set to cross the danger mark by tomorrow morning.
The water level in Yamuna has already crossed the danger mark. It reached 204.63 metres at 1 pm today. The danger mark is – 204.50. The Delhi Chief Minister said the capital city is prepared even if a flood-like situation does arise. “As per CWC, Yamuna River is flowing at 203.58 meters in Delhi. It is expected to reach 205.5 meters tomorrow morning. Also, according to weather predictions, the water level in Yamuna is not expected to rise too high; a flood-like situation is unlikely. If Yamuna crosses the 206-meter mark, then we will start evacuation along the banks of the river,” CM Kejriwal said.
Kejriwal also informed that he is in touch with Central Water Commission in view of rising Yamuna water levels, and their predictions indicate a flood-like situation won’t arise. he also suggested that “This is not the time to point fingers at each other. The governments of all affected states need to work together to provide relief to the public.”
The Chief Minister also claimed that this is the first time when waterlogging has been reported in the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) areas. “Some roads also caved in there. We have asked officials to ascertain the cause,” he said. Potholes on roads will be filled with stones to avert untoward incidents, the Chief Minister further said, adding that he has asked NDMC to resolve waterlogging issues.
“The unprecedented rain caused problems for people and Delhi’s system was not able to withstand it. Every year after rainfall, some vulnerable areas are waterlogged and the water is drained out in a couple of hours. But the 153 mm of rainfall was unprecedented and an event which happened in nearly 40 years,” he said.
Kejriwal had earlier called a meeting to discuss the waterlogging situation in the city caused by torrential rains and the rising levels of the Yamuna. The meeting held at the Delhi Secretariat was attended by the Minister of Health in Delhi Saurabh Bharadwaj, Education Minister Atishi and other officials of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi among others.
