Urban local body must ensure drainages are not clogged to prevent flooding: Puri

Every urban local body needs to ensure that drainages are not clogged to prevent flooding, said Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs during question hour in Rajya Sabha.

New Delhi: Every urban local body needs to ensure that drainages are not clogged to prevent flooding, said Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs during question hour in Rajya Sabha. Opposition MPs continued ruckus while proceedings were going on in the Upper House. They have been pressing on issues like Pegasus snooping row, farm laws, Covid crisis.

When asked about the plight of the drainage system in the wake of recent floods in Maharashtra, Puri said, storm water drainage is an important component in Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) project. In order to ensure that drains are not clogged, every urban local body needs to make effort. There is a total grant of Rs 50,000 crore in the project for drainages, he said.

Currently, 60% of urban spaces are covered under the project, specifically, cities with a population of 1 lakh, he said. Heavy rains last week caused floods and landslides in some areas of Maharashtra, including the deadliest landslide at Taliye village in the Raigad district.

While Puri was speaking, Opposition MPs ventured into the Well of the House and intensified sloganeering. They displayed placards showing 'Stop Snooping'. The Marine Aids to Navigation Bill 2021 was passed on Tuesday through voice vote amid the continuous din.