New Delhi: New Delhi Municipal Council has approved a proposal for buying five more CNG mechanical road sweepers (MRS) to undertake night sweeping in all markets and public places in Lutyens’ Delhi by next May. It also plans to acquire a separate set of small machines and equipment for cleaning narrow lanes and common areas in 22 markets, which can’t be covered by MRS. The equipment includes 10 litter pickers, seven floor cleaning machines, 10 pressure jetting machines and 10 water sprinklers.“To address worsening air quality and dust pollution, especially during the winter, the council approved the procurement of five new CNG-operated MRS. The existing fleet of seven MRS, deployed in 2017-18, is aged and frequently out of service, severely affecting NDMC’s ability to meet its daily cleaning target of 365km road and markets,” said vice-chairman Kuljeet Chahal. The council granted administrative approval of Rs 6.7 crore for the project through the Central Pollution Control Board funding. Chahal said NDMC’s Swachhta division monitors air quality and reports data to agencies, including CPCB, Delhi Pollution Control Committee and Commission for Air Quality Management. “Under National Green Tribunal’s guidelines prohibiting new diesel vehicle registrations in Delhi, CPCB agreed to fund the procurement of these new CNG-operated sweepers,” he added. Currently, night cleaning is performed in three markets, Connaught Place, Prithviraj Market and Khan Market, using 44 sanitation staff and dedicated equipment, while evening cleaning is performed in 12 markets, including Gole Market, Khanna Market, Begum Zaidi Market and Bengali Market.“Eventually, we have plans to cover all markets. We plan to deploy 115 sanitation staff, 10 supervisors, in addition to MRS, floor cleaning machines, pressure jetting machines, garbage collection vehicles and litter picker machines,” according to NDMC’s detailed report. The sanitation division is also working on a detailed plan to improve air quality and dust control in its area.A proposal will also be worked out for reviving non-performing assets such as restaurants at Lodhi Garden and Coffee House at Chanakyapuri in a time-bound manner after settling legal disputes. “The idea is to reopen them to the public. We are also working on plans for developing public-friendly places, including eateries,” said Chahal. Other properties, such as Super Bazaar and Akbar Bhawan, will also be revamped, and NDMC is working on these plans.In the council meeting, members unanimously passed a condemnation resolution to mark the 50th anniversary of the imposition of emergency in India on June 25, 1975. The issue of non-vacation of flats even after the transfer of officers and non-transfer of flats provided under the inter-pool policy was also discussed. It was stated that the NDMC was facing problems in providing accommodation to its officers in Lutyens’ Delhi.
