Day after Panipat MC rap, L&T laxity in drain clean-up on full display

Mukesh Tandon

Panipat, June 29

Waterlogging on the NH-44 near Khadi Ashram has washed out L&T’s claims of having cleaned the drains along the highway. The MC has mentioned in its report that the L&T storm drains have not been cleaned properly.

Notably, the L&T made a 10-km-long elevated highway in Panipat in 2008 and has been charging toll since it became operational. As per the tender, the L&T has to maintain the storm drains on both sides of NH-44, but it has failed to do so over the years, due to which the stretch gets waterlogged every year during the monsoon.

MLA Pramod Vij, along with DC Virender Kumar Dahiya, Sahil Gupta, Commissioner, MC, had reviewed the cleaning of drains around 15 days ago and directed the company to clean the drains.

Company failed to remove silt

• The L&T made a 10-km-long elevated highway in Panipat in 2008 and has been charging toll since it became operational. As per the tender, the L&T has to maintain the drains on both sides of NH-44
• In the letter, the MC stated that the drains along the NH-44 were not fit to drain out rain water with its designed capacity as the company hadn’t removed the silt.
• It stated that this could cause severe waterlogging

MC officials pulled up too

• MC Commissioner Sahil Gupta also pulled up civic body officials on finding blockage in Drain Number-1, besides drains in the Kutani Road area in the city.
• He identified six points where urgent cleaning was needed.

On Thursday, MC Commissioner Sahil Gupta, along with officials of the engineering and sanitary wing, carried out a fresh inspection of drains along the highway and other places in the city. He inspected Drain Number-1 from the Mini-Secretariat to Sector-25, besides drains in the Kutani Road area and identified six points where urgent cleaning was needed. On finding problems at several places, the Commissioner pulled up MC officials and directed them to clean the drains at the earliest.

He also inspected the drain along the NH-44 near the bus stand, SD College, Sanjay Chowk and Khadi Ashram, which are the main vulnerable points in the city.

Following the inspection, the engineering wing of the Municipal Corporation prepared a report on the drains along the NH-44. As per the report, all connection points of L&T storm drains on the GT Road to major roads like Jatal road, Barsat road, Sanoli road are blocked.

MC officers on Friday sent a letter to the L&T directing it to clean the drains at the earliest. In the letter, the MC has clearly mentioned that the storm drains under the L&T are not fit to drain out rain water with its designed capacity as the company didn’t remove the deposited silt. It would cause severe waterlogging along NH-44, it warned.

On the other hand, the drain number-1, which flows through the middle of the ‘Textile City’and is considered to be its life line, was also found clogged with silt, mud and garbage, especially near bridges on various spots.

Following the Commissioner’s directions, sanitary wing officials began cleaning of the drain. The MC also began cleaning of the drains on both sides of Kutani road. The Commissioner claimed that almost all internal drains, however, had been cleaned in the city. He confirmed that a letter had been sent to the L&T to clean drains along the highway.