Gurgaon: Repair work on the service road near IFFCO Chowk, where a portion of the road caved in on Tuesday, is yet to begin as GMDA is working on diverting sewage and dewatering the affected stretch.The sinkhole, which was around 10 feet wide when the road caved in, widened to more than 30 feet within hours.The affected road remains barricaded, while sewage from the damaged stretch is being diverted to an alternate manhole to reduce the flow at the site and prevent further erosion. The cave-in also affected water supply in parts of the city on Wednesday morning.The 1,000-mm-diameter GMDA master sewer line carries sewage from areas including DLF-2, MG Road and IFFCO Chowk towards Behrampur sewage treatment plant. Officials say the extent and gravity of damage to the line can only be assessed once the affected area is completely dewatered.Pumping equipment is now being used to remove water, while sewer flow is being diverted to an alternate nearby manhole.GMDA CEO PC Meena, who visited the spot on Wednesday, said, “Pumping machinery has been deployed at the site and sewer water is being diverted towards an alternate nearby manhole to reduce the flow at the affected location and prevent further erosion. Once the sewer flow reduces and the affected area is cleared, the engineering team will undertake a detailed inspection of the pipeline to assess the extent and gravity of the damage. Based on the findings, the required rectification work will be taken up on priority.”He also directed senior officers and the engineering team to continuously monitor the site, particularly amid the ongoing rain, and ensure that necessary measures are taken without delay.An NHAI official says the agency is coordinating with GMDA on the issue and is managing traffic around the affected stretch.“First, the sewage flow has to be diverted and the water removed. Once the sewer line is rectified, we can take up the road restoration work. Our agency and machineries are ready to carry out the road restoration as soon as possible,” the official says.The cave-in continues to affect traffic movement towards the U-turn flyover. Commuters coming from MG Road and IFFCO Chowk and travelling towards Delhi or Sukhrali face restrictions around the affected stretch. Those heading towards Delhi are required to take a U-turn from Sukhrali.IFFCO Chowk is one of the city’s busiest traffic junctions. The flyover at the junction was completed in 2019 as part of a project launched in 2016 to reduce congestion on Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway.NHAI says traffic arrangements are being managed in coordination with the police to prevent congestion around the junction. Officials are monitoring the situation and will make further changes to traffic movement if required.Meanwhile, the water supply was disrupted in tail-end areas, particularly DLF-1 and Sushant Lok-1, after GMDA shut the water supply for nearly five hours to check whether the cave-in was caused by an underground water pipeline. The water pipeline was inspected and no damage was found. Supply from Basai water treatment plant resumed around 1am on Wednesday. However, residents say supply was disrupted in the morning hours.Officials say the water-supply disruption was precautionary and separate from the sewer-line issue. The water pipeline remains intact, and supply has been resumed and it will be streamlined soon.
