Delhi to get unified complaint number, command centre for waterlogging woes

The Delhi government is planning to introduce a common helpline number and set up a unified command centre to effectively deal with monsoon related complaints of waterlogging and tree felling, Delhi cabinet minister Parvesh Verma said on Monday.

“All three governments in Delhi are from the same party and there is no blame game. During the rains that happened four days ago, we saw that each department’s complaint centre received a lot of calls. Now, we want to create an integrated command centre for NDMC, MCD, PWD, DDA, flood department and Jal Board. After this, we will release a single number to report cases of waterlogging,” Verma said while inspecting the New Delhi Municipal Council’s (NDMC) Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) on Monday.

The complaint number, he said, will be 311. “Our vision is ‘One Delhi, One Number’. People do not know whether their area comes under PWD, MCD or DDA. They will be able to complain on one number and we will divert the complaint to the relevant department. If the CM wants to inspect, she should be able to see the camera footage from all over Delhi and where all waterlogging has occurred,” Verma added.

Further, the minister said CCTV cameras will soon be installed in all waterlogging prone areas, especially where no surveillance infrastructure currently exists. Moreover, all pumping stations across the Capital will be upgraded with automated systems which is expected to accelerate water drainage and provide technical support to field teams at all levels.

After the thunderstorm on Friday, Delhi witnessed falling of trees on a widespread level. HT had reported on May 4 that residents were not aware of the Quick Response Team (QRT) formed by chief minister (CM) Rekha Gupta about a fortnight ago for addressing complaints related to trees that have fallen on roads. The QRT mechanism was found lacking, RWAs in the city alleged.

Officials from the minister’s office said that the new setup is being developed specifically keeping the upcoming monsoon season in mind. “Whether it’s waterlogging, broken roads, choked drains, or overflowing sewers, citizens will no longer have to run from one department to another for redressal,” an official said.

Verma said that a joint meeting of all departments concerned will be held within the next two to three days. “This meeting will finalise the operational structure of the command centre, deployment of departmental representatives, accountability systems, and technical integration,” he added.

Located at the ground floor of the NDMC headquarters at Palika Kendra near Jantar Mantar, the ICCC receives live video streams from more than 500 cameras and 53 smart poles located across the key rotaries and avenue roads of Lutyens’ Delhi.