In fair weather or foul,Vasant Kunj residents battle sewage in taps

The Delhi Jal Board on Friday said normal water supply has now been resumed in Pockets C-I and C-II of Vasant Kunj. “A complaint was received on January 25 regarding contamination of the water supply in a few households of these pockets in Vasant Kunj. An inspection of the site revealed that wastewater from the Masoodpur Dairy was spilling over the internal roads and pavements of this area on account of blockage of the Masoodpur drain,which is maintained by the DDA,” a statement issued by the DJB said.

Subhash Sahni,chairman of the federation of Vasant Kunj RWAs,said the problem of sewage mixing with drinking water has been recurring for almost 20 years now,and all arrangements made to tackle the same have been temporary.

“The problem has gone to the roots this time. We met with the Lieutenant Governor six months back regarding the issue,and Rs 23 crore was sanctioned to rectify the pipeline system in the area. The work,however,has made no progress as the government’s system of floating tenders takes a lot of time,” Sahni said.

DJB officials said the affected area (about 10 blocks comprising 75 to 80 houses) lies in the low lying pockets of Vasant Kunj adjacent to the Masoodpur Dairy.

“Since Masoodpur Dairy has a significant cattle population,the wastewater flowing out from there mainly consists of cow dung and other sewage material. The backflow from the blocked DDA drainage system clogged the local drainage network. Most residents also use online booster pumps illegally adding to the problem,” a DJB official said. Officials added that repair work on the Masoodpur drainage pipeline is in progress and the flow of wastewater has been diverted into a nearby drainage system as an interim arrangement.