Delhi minister shoots rain-check video at Minto Bridge - ‘No submerged buses this monsoon’

Delhi Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Parvesh Verma on Wednesday took stock of the situation in the national capital after a spell of heavy rain lashed Delhi. The minister visited one of Delhi’s most infamous flood-prone spots, the Minto Bridge underpass, and shot a video himself to prove that it was clear of water this time, NDTV reported.

Delhi: Minister Parvesh Verma shared a video showing that the monsoon has arrived in Delhi and that the government's preparations are fully effective pic.twitter.com/yPyYGXqKxI

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In the video shared by his office, Minister Verma is seen at the site, with traffic flowing smoothly behind him. He says, "The monsoon is welcome in Delhi. It has been raining for the past hour but there is no waterlogging at Minto Bridge - the same underpass where buses can be seen submerged every monsoon," Verma said.

Notably, Minto Bridge has become a symbol of Delhi’s poor monsoon infrastructure, with repeated incidents of vehicles getting stuck and even lives being lost during heavy rains. This time, however, the PWD claims it took pre-monsoon action by cleaning drains, repairing stormwater pipelines, and installing heavy-duty water pumps in flood-prone zones.

The minister's office also released a series of photographs from other waterlogging-prone sites including the Prembari underpass, Ring Road, Saket Metro stretch, and the area around Max Hospital. All sites appeared dry and functional in the visuals.

As per NDTV, there was no waterlogging at Minto Bridge, and that conditions had improved at ITO. However, not all areas fared as well. Streets near Barakhamba Road and Ajmeri Gate were flooded, leading to traffic jams and inconvenience for commuters.

PWD officials explained that drainage upgrades were underway in those central zones, which led to temporary issues, though pumps had been deployed and traffic police were actively managing the situation.

Opposition slams BJP government
Meanwhile, opposition leader Saurabh Bharadwaj from Aam Aadmi Party took a dig at the PWD Minister. Sharing a clip on social media, he wrote, "Delhi's Lutyens area - the road near the official residence of PWD, Water, and Flood Control Minister Parvesh Verma - see the condition after just one hour of rain."