Gupta blames govt for delayed desilting of drains
Leader of the Opposition in Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta criticized the Delhi government for not meeting the deadline for de-silting of drains ahead of monsoon. The BJP said that pre-monsoon showers have exposed the claims of the government.
Alleging that it has failed to fulfil its responsibility, Gupta added that the government had not taken concrete action as per the drainage system master plan. Gupta said he had written to the government on several occasions urging to take measures to prevent waterlogging, but chief minister Arvind Kejriwal politicizes the issue and blames other institutions.
“The main reason for waterlogging in Delhi is that Public Works Department (PWD) and Delhi Jal Board (DJB) does only cosmetic de-silting of nallahs and sewerage system in their jurisdiction. The big drains such as Najafgarh Drain, Kushak Nala, and Barapulla drain are still filled with silt consequently rainwater spreads over the roads,” he said.
Gupta said the business of de-silting and cleaning the drains is big scam in Delhi and it is suppressed at higher levels for unknown reasons. He also demanded investigation by Anti Corruption Branch to ascertain the money spent during last three years on de-silting and cleaning of nallahs in the city.
Chief minister Mehbooba Mufti announced a Rs 5 lakh payout to the relatives of those who died and ordered a high-level investigation.
“What terrible news! If confirmed this will be the first such incident with the Gulmarg cable car. My heart felt (sic) condolences to the families”, said former chief minister Omar Abdullah on Twitter.
The Gulmarg Gondola is among key tourist attractions in a region known as one of Asia’s best ski resorts. The service is one of the highest and longest cable-based lift services in the continent, ferrying passengers to and from the Gulmarg base to the Kongdori station roughly 4,000 feet above.
Survivors in other cars recounted feeling shocked when they stopped moving with a violent lurch.
“It was panic for the three hours that we were stuck on the cable car,” said Rekha Lakhanpal, an Indian-origin American woman visiting Kashmir with her Delhi-based relative Chitra Wazir Kumar.
“Our car was right behind the victims’. We saw it happen,” said a shaken Kumar, who later said she was grateful to their guide Muzaffar Hussain who kept talking to them to calm them down.
The system was stopped for three hours after the tree fell, and officials slowly started to reel in the cars that had been in the air around 6pm. After checks, the service was resumed to bring back nearly 150 people who were stuck at the Kongdori station.
Top civil officials, besides a number of paramilitary and police personnel, paid their respects to the fallen officer. Shukla hailed from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh.
The Pantha Chowk encounter has turned the spotlight on how the Kashmir unrest continues to affect children’s education in the state. Over 30 schools were either completely or partially gutted by miscreants last summer.
“We tried to keep the damage to the building at a minimum during the encounter because the enemy seems intent on destroying our schools. They want students to abandon their education, but we will ensure that nothing like that happens,” Vaid told media on the sidelines of Shukla’s wreath-laying ceremony.
The ruling Peoples Democratic Party agreed with the police officer’s claim. “The attack on #DPSSrinagar is another attempt by these anti-Kashmir elements to push the youth of the state towards illiteracy,” it tweeted. “Destroying schools is a heinous ploy of anti-Kashmir elements who don’t want kids here to study and prosper.”