NDMC seeks Rs 500 crore from DJB for roads

The North Delhi Municipal Corporation on Wednesday said the Delhi Jal Board was digging its roads without permission and had not paid any “road restoration” charges. Out of total demand of Rs 48 crore raised by the NDMC for road restoration, the DJB had just paid Rs 1.25 crore, the civic body said. It also claimed that the utility service provider owes up to Rs 400- Rs 500 crore as total road restoration charges, including for the digging done without permission.

The issue of road-digging was raised during a meeting of the NDMC standing committee, in which both ruling BJP and Opposition Congress members claimed that the DJB was digging roads without the permission and this was jeopardising public safety ahead of monsoon. NDMC engineer-in-chief K.P. Singh informed the committee that the only corporation was authorised to give permission for digging of its roads and no other agency was authorised to do so.

The NDMC councillors said the DJB does not even bother to inform the corporation about digging of its roads. NDMC Leader of House Vijay Prakash Pandey said to avoid being questioned many times, the DJB comes with heavy machinery and digs up roads after midnight. “The DJB not only digging roads, but it is also not paying any road restoration charges,” he added. Mr Singh added that recently the DJB had paid Rs 1.25 crore as its road restoration charges. “This amount is part of Rs 48 crore that the DJB has to pay for digging up the NDMC roads,” said Mr Singh.

Standing committee deputy chairman Rajesh Bhatia said the DJB owes several hundred crores in road restoration charges. “The DJB owes around Rs 50 crore as road restoration charges for the digging it had taken permission for. What about the illegal digging done by the DJB The utility service provider owes Rs 400-Rs 500 crore as total road restoration charges,” added Mr Bhatia.

Leader of Opposition Mukesh Goel said the Delhi government is not giving funds to the NDMC and on the other side its agency (the DJB) is not paying road restoration charges.

NDMC chairman Parvesh Wahi directed the engineering department to ensure that no road digging should place without permission. “Take action against any agency found digging roads without permission,” said Mr Wahi.

The complaints about the DJB piled up after BJP councillor Virender Babbar questioned whether permission for digging the NDMC roads was given by the corporation or the Delhi government’s public works department.