Gurugram flooding: Haryana orders probe, sets December 31 deadline

Chandigarh. The Haryana government has ordered a probe into why Gurugram keeps flooding. It has told the district administration to draw up a full flood management plan for the city by December 31, 2026.

Dr Sumita Misra, Financial Commissioner Revenue and Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management, said on Thursday that the Gurugram Deputy Commissioner had been told to personally oversee flood control work. The DC will make sure the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram, the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), the Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP), the engineering departments and the police work together.

Officials must now find every flooding hotspot in the city and work out exactly why water collects there, including blocked drains and faulty stormwater drain design. The government wants a plan that fixes the root causes and manages rainwater. Clearing waterlogged roads alone will not be enough.

“A City Action Plan for Urban Flood Management shall be developed by 31.12.2026 with clearly defined targets, milestones and time-bound interventions,” the Revenue and Disaster Management Department said in its communication.

The administration has also been asked to study whether Hyderabad’s flood management model can work in Gurugram. The study will look at a central control room and at linking lakes and other water bodies.

Because flooding disrupts traffic so badly, the Director General of Police has been asked to have officers prepare standard operating procedures to reduce flooding and traffic jams on rainy days.

The directions follow a recent high-level meeting called by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and chaired by its Additional Secretary (Disaster Management). Senior officials at the meeting discussed Gurugram’s persistent flooding.

The district will send proposals for flood prevention projects to be funded from the State Disaster Mitigation Fund. The state has also asked the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) for technical help to find the causes of urban flooding and suggest practical solutions. The Gurugram Divisional Commissioner and the GMDA chief executive officer have been asked to keep all the agencies working together.

The district must also map critical infrastructure and emergency resources on a GIS (geographic information system) map, so officials can find them quickly in a crisis. It has been told to promote the SACHET app for faster disaster warnings and to give Civil Defence more staff, equipment and training. Trained Aapda Mitra and Yuva Aapda Mitra volunteers will be brought into emergency response.

In all, the directions cover seven priority areas, including root-cause analysis, water-body management, disaster funding, technical planning and emergency preparedness.