Revamping drainage system to end water-logging will take time: Kejriwal

New Delhi: Blaming previous regimes for gifting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government the problem of the “idiosyncratic drainage system”, that causes immense water-logging in the national capital during rains, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said its revamp will take time.

The Chief Minister’s remarks came a day after entire Delhi saw waterlogged streets and paralysed traffic due to intensely heavy rainfall that even left Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in complete disarray with arrival area, runways, and tarmac flooded, and the Dwarka underpass remaining under water for hours.

“We have said earlier as well that the drainage system throughout Delhi needs to be fixed. We got this idiosyncratic drainage system as a gift from the previous governments. It needs time. It was never worked upon by them earlier. But I can assure you that after some years, you won’t see water-logging anywhere in Delhi,” Kejriwal said while inaugurating a redeveloped stretch at Chandni Chowk on Sunday.

Several spells of heavy rains pummelled the city with 94.4 mm rainfall between 8.30 a.m. on Saturday to 8.30 a.m. on Sunday. According to the Public Works Department (PWD), over 350 complaints of water-logging from across the city were received on Saturday.