HHRC Orders Citywide Drainage Audit

GURUGRAM: The Haryana Human Rights Commission has directed civic and engineering agencies to carry out a comprehensive technical audit of the city's stormwater drainage network and to place a conjoint compliance report before the commission a week ahead of its next hearing on 15 December 2026.

Dr Puneet Arora, assistant registrar of the commission, said the bench headed by chairperson Justice Lalit Batra took suo motu cognisance of severe waterlogging, traffic paralysis and disruption of essential services reported after heavy August rain. The commission observed that the problem appeared to reflect a recurring pattern of flooding and inadequate civic infrastructure rather than a one-off storm.

What agencies must examine

Gurugram received around 75 mm of rainfall on 24 August, according to the district administration, after which widespread waterlogging was reported at Subhash Chowk, Rajiv Chowk, Narsinghpur, Iffco Chowk, Sohna Road, Sheetla Mata Road, the NH-48 Delhi-Gurugram Expressway belt and parts of Old Gurugram. The commission also noted stranded school buses, parents unable to reach children, and disruption to ambulances and other emergency vehicles.

GMDA has been asked to coordinate the audit with the district administration, Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran, Public Works Department (Buildings and Roads), Public Health Engineering Department, Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and town planning authorities. The exercise is to assess carrying capacity, natural drains, traditional watercourses, ponds, low-lying areas and chronic waterlogging points, including 99 locations reportedly already identified by authorities.

The commission also ordered preparation of a time-bound integrated urban drainage and civic infrastructure revamping plan based on hydrological, hydraulic, environmental and engineering assessments, covering short, medium and long-term measures rather than only desilting or temporary pumping. A GIS-based map of natural and engineered channels is to identify obstructions and encroachments for lawful action.

Authorities must also report on the standard operating procedure for school transport in heavy rain, including real-time bus tracking, parent communication, safe holding points and evacuation arrangements, and on emergency corridors for ambulances, fire services and police. Proposed underground reservoirs or high-capacity recharge structures are to be assessed site by site before inclusion in the larger plan.

The December deadline turns the order into a live compliance calendar for GMDA and partner agencies. Residents who face the same flooded junctions every monsoon will watch whether the conjoint report lists timed works on the 99 chronic points or only restates existing desilting schedules.