Today, On 30th May, The Delhi High Court directed the PWD to clean a culvert in the Delhi Cantonment area after noting that soldiers were forced to walk through waist-deep sludge four times daily, calling the condition unacceptable and unsafe.
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday directed authorities to promptly clean the culvert and pathway used by over 3,000 soldiers of the Rajputana Rifles to access the parade ground in the Delhi Cantonment area.
The court was informed by the superintendent engineer and counsel for the Public Works Department (PWD) that in-principle approval had been granted for the construction of a foot over bridge (FOB) for the crossing.
A bench comprising Justices Prathiba M Singh and Manmeet PS Arora stated that while the FOB work should proceed at its own pace, the PWD must immediately clear the area, remove debris and mud, clean the walls, and install block tiles to ensure safe passage for the soldiers.
The bench noted,
“The court has perused the photographs of the culvert and the walking path of Rajputana Rifles soldiers. As the FOB designing, tendering, construction, etc., goes on parallelly, the engineer in charge has agreed to get the entire walking path cleaned with some tiling in the culvert after removal of ‘malba’ and stones, etc., which could be hazardous,”
The court emphasized that cleaning should commence without delay and instructed the authorities to submit photographs and a status report by June 18.
It added,
“During the monsoons, there is a possibility of a lot of mud being collected in the area after rains; the maintenance of the area shall be undertaken on a daily basis so that no inconvenience is caused in the movement of soldiers,”
The high court, On May 26, had taken judicial notice of a news report highlighting that over 3,000 Rajputana Rifles soldiers had to traverse a foul-smelling, filthy drain to leave their barracks for the parade ground.
The bench pointed out,
“The soldiers are required to pass through this culvert four times a day. The said drain is stated to be flooded and is slick with sludge and sometimes near waist-deep in places,”
Describing the situation as “unacceptable,” the court noted that a bridge had been requested from the Delhi government authorities at the site but had yet to be constructed.
The bench remarked,
“This particular story relating to the soldiers who have to march through this drain is indeed an unacceptable situation. The report states that a bridge was requested but has not yet been built,”
During the hearing, it was revealed that the area is low-lying and the height of the culvert is very low.
A PWD official suggested the installation of a traffic signal along with a zebra crossing, with fixed timings for soldier movement, allowing them to use the road for crossing from barracks to the parade ground.
In this regard, the court issued a notice to the Deputy Commissioner of Police, requesting an examination of the feasibility of establishing a traffic signal and zebra crossing to ensure that vehicular movement is not hindered.
The bench instructed the DCP (traffic) and the engineer in charge to hold a meeting on June 3 with the nodal officer from the Delhi Cantonment Board to coordinate these efforts.
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