PWD faces HC ire over manual scavenging

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday pulled up the Public Works Department (PWD) for use of manual scavengers by contractors for de-silting of drains.

A Bench of Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and S. P. Garg asked the PWD how it had allowed the prohibited activity of manual scavenging and why was it not supervising the work of its contractors.

It asked the PWD to compile data on the number of manual scavengers being used by contractors and how it planned to deal with the problem. Three sanitation workers died due asphyxiation while cleaning a drain here last week.

Kushak drain

The PWD also faced flak for alleged encroachment of Kushak storm water drain under Barapullah flyover here.

The Bench told the PWD to initiate immediate action to remove all encroachments as well as buses parked there.

The court was also displeased with the conflicting statements made before it by the PWD. It had earlier said that work on Barapullah bridge would end by June 2017. The deadline was later extended to July 2017. On Wednesday, the PWD said work would end by December.