Overflowing Yamuna forces closures of schools, colleges, govt offices in Delhi

Overflows and waterlogging in Delhi lead to closed schools, colleges and government offices

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority on Thursday directed that all schools, colleges and government offices for non-essential services in the city be closed till July 16 as water of the raging Yamuna inundated several areas of the national capital.

As the Yamuna waters spilled into more areas of Delhi and rescue efforts intensified, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said private establishments across the city have been advised to allow their staffers to work from home.

Commercial establishments in and around Kashmere Gate currently underwater will be asked to close down till the situation improved, officials said.

Twelve National Disaster Response Force teams, equipped with inflatable boats, ropes and other equipment, have been deployed in Delhi to help the administration in its rescue efforts.

More than 20,000 people have been shifted to the relief camps so far. There are 50 boats and more will be deployed if needed, said Kejriwal who attended the DDMA meeting chaired by Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena.

The city is also staring at a drinking water shortage as the Delhi government decided to cut down supply by 25 per cent following the closure of three water treatment plants — Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla — due to the rising level of the Yamuna.

Kejriwal, who visited the Wazirabad water treatment plant, warned of rationalising water supply to deal with "acute shortage". He, however, said the water treatment plants will be resumed as soon as the situation turns to normal.

The DDMA decided to take proactive relief and preventive measures in areas such as Sonia Vihar, Mukherjee Nagar and Haqeeqat Nagar susceptible to flooding, said a statement from the LG office.

The meeting was also attended by Revenue Minister Atishi and Irrigation and Flood Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, besides chiefs of police and civil administration.

"All schools, colleges and universities are being closed till Sunday," Kejriwal told reporters after the meeting.

Waterlogging at the Kashmere Gate bus terminal forced the Delhi Transport Department to terminate buses from Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and elsewhere at the Singhu border.

DTC buses will ferry people from there, officials said.

The Delhi chief minister said in view of the problems faced by the people in relief camps, they will be shifted to school buildings which have proper toilet facilities.

Apart from the 12 NDRF teams, additional personnel have been deployed to help in the relief and rescue operation, said the LG office statement.

Additional personnel will be deployed for traffic management in affected areas. Entry of heavy vehicles, except those carrying essential goods, will be banned at the city borders of Chilla, Loni, Singhu and Badarpur, it said.

The DDMA also directed that all the control rooms for relief and rescue work will work in coordination to address any emergency.

Cremation facilities close to inundated areas will remain in a state of preparedness, it said.

It was also decided in the meeting that the healthcare infrastructure in the city will be alerted to tackle any eventuality once the water recedes.

The DDMA appealed to people to avoid unnecessary travel till the situation normalises. PTI VIT VIT NSD NSD