New Delhi: Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) has earmarked Rs 40,000 for each of its 250 wards to strengthen street lighting on approach roads to Chhath ghats and is planning to deploy its existing sanitation staff in multiple shifts to maintain cleanliness at the sites during and after the festival.Various agencies, in coordination with or under the direction of Delhi govt, develop Chhath ghats every year. Last year, around 1,500 ghats were prepared across the city, including by Delhi govt’s irrigation and flood control department. While govt is yet to announce the number of ghats to be developed this year, MCD has allocated funds to ensure work under its jurisdiction is carried out in a planned manner.Officials said the funds have primarily been allocated to the electrical department to address lighting issues on roads leading to the ghats. As the four-day festival approaches, the sanitation department will be assigned specific responsibilities for cleaning and maintaining the sites.“At least two Chhath ghats will be developed in each ward by the civic body. Since there is no plan to engage additional sanitation staff, a decision has been taken to mobilise the existing workforce. Sanitation staff in each zone will sweep the sites in multiple shifts and maintain cleanliness at all Chhath ghats in the city,” an official said.The official added that MCD will launch special cleanliness drives in markets and residential areas ahead of Diwali. With footfall increasing during the festive season, roads and markets require sweeping multiple times a day.“As soon as the Diwali festival is over, the focus will shift to maintaining cleanliness in the ghat areas,” the official said.The civic body will also undertake post-festival cleaning and restoration of the sites. However, officials said door-to-door garbage collection in residential areas will not be affected by the deployment of sanitation workers at the ghats.Meanwhile, MCD’s public health department has been tasked with spraying insecticides around temples, Dussehra grounds and puja pandals that attract large crowds during the festive season.
