The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) provided a written reply in the Rajya Sabha regarding urban flooding and landslides, clarifying that water and sanitation is a state subject and the management of urban flooding, including drain cleaning and desilting, falls under the purview of State Governments and Urban Local Bodies. The Central Government's role is to supplement state efforts through schematic interventions, advisories, and financial and technical support to strengthen urban planning. The Ministry identified the increased incidence of high-intensity rainfall in short durations as the primary cause of urban floods, compounded by factors like unplanned growth, encroachment of natural water bodies, and inadequate drainage systems.
MoHUA has published several key advisory documents to improve urban drainage and flood management, including the Urban and Regional Development Plans Formulation and Implementation (URDPFI) Guidelines (2014), a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Urban Flooding, River Centric Urban Planning Guidelines (2021), a Guidance Document on Creation of Rain Water Harvesting Parks, and a Manual on Storm Water Drainage System.
The core schematic intervention is the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT). Under AMRUT 1.0, launched in 2015, 838 storm water drainage projects worth ₹3,022.39 crore have been undertaken by States/UTs. Furthermore, 2,522 green spaces and park projects worth ₹1,604.13 crore have been taken up, developing 5,400 acres of permeable green space area.
Under AMRUT 2.0, States/UTs have had proposals approved for 2,951 water body rejuvenation projects worth ₹6,003.34 crore, covering approximately 1.21 lakh acres, and 1,649 green spaces and park projects worth ₹1,087.12 crore, covering around 12,750 acres.
Additionally, sewerage and septage management projects under both missions aid storm water evacuation. Under AMRUT 1.0, 888 such projects have been grounded, creating approximately 22,539 km of sewer network. Under AMRUT 2.0, 605 sewerage and septage management projects are underway, covering 40,021 km of sewer network. The reply was presented by the Minister of State, Shri Tokhan Sahu.