Flood preparations: LG, AAP trade barbs

NEW DELHI: Officials from the lieutenant governor’s secretariat on Sunday alleged that Delhi’s apex committee for flood control, headed by the chief minister, has not met for the last two years even as the blame game continued over flooding in different parts of the Capital over the last week in areas along the Yamuna

- Paras Singh

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government hit back, saying that they regularly review flood and waterlogging issues, with the irrigation & flood control (I&FC) minister Saurabh Bhardwaj and Public Works Department (PWD) minister Atishi jointly chairing a meeting in May where the preparations were reviewed. The government said that chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has also been monitoring the situation.

“Regular interdepartmental meetings have been happening to iron out issues regarding floods and waterlogging... The flood control order was issued as per the due process, keeping Delhi’s historical data in mind,” the government said in a statement. The panel is expected to monitor the water level of the Yamuna, safeguard vulnerable points, and ensure coordination between various agencies of the Delhi government, the Union government, the Army, and the Central Water Commission (CWC).

An LG secretariat official said that the compulsory meeting of the flood control committee should have taken place by the end of June.