Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Gopal Rai has been divested of the irrigation and flood control portfolio, which has now gone to Satyendar Jain, to bring about more “synergy” in the development of unauthorised colonies. The decision, notified on July 13, comes ahead of a high-level meeting involving more than 10 agencies on waterlogging in various parts of the city, including central Delhi’s Minto Road. “The decision has been taken with an aim to have better coordination in development works at unauthorised colonies, taken care of by the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC) and the Irrigation and Flood Control Department. Work was getting sandwiched as Jain handles DSIIDC, while Rai was handling the other department,” an official in the Chief Minister’s Office told The Indian Express. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had recently directed agencies to expedite laying of water and sewer lines and construction of roads in around 1,481 unauthorised colonies dotting the capital, describing the prevailing conditions in them as “hellish”. Rai could not be reached for comments despite repeated attempts. Rai, who is AAP’s Delhi convenor, had stepped down as the transport minister in June 2016 on health grounds. With this, Jain’s portfolios have gone up to seven, including the crucial departments of Home, PWD, Industries, Power, Health and Urban Development. He ranks second to Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is in-charge of as many as 10 departments. The notification, signed by Deputy Secretary of the General Administration Department Amitabh Kundoo, states that “the Lt-Governor of NCT of Delhi, in consultation with the Chief Minister, is pleased to allocate the portfolio of Irrigation and Flood Control to Satyendar Jain”. Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash has directed departments to probe the reason behind frequent waterlogging in certain “vulnerable spots”, where water levels rose to an extent that DTC buses got half-submerged during the recent showers.
