Water up to their necks. Floating plastic chairs. Houses submerged in water. This is the ordeal of the residents of Valmiki Basti in South Delhi’s Asola every monsoon.
“Log bolte hai barish ho toh garmi kam hogi, lekin humare liye toh musibat aati hai (People say once it rains, the heat reduces. But it becomes a problem for us),” said 60-year-old Krishna, standing outside her home.
Valmiki Basti is home to nearly 500 families, most of them Dalits working as sanitation workers. As it rained in Delhi over the past few days, water entered several homes, leaving these families anxious about what the monsoon may bring.
At the centre of their worries is a natural drain that begins in the Aravalis and cuts through parts of Asola before emptying into a pond near the neighbouring Fatehpur Beri. This drain was once free-flowing but turns into a dangerous chokepoint every time it rains heavily, threatening homes with overflowing water. A solution has remained out of reach despite court orders, official visits, and endless assurances.
The Delhi government now claims to be working on a “permanent” fix after a sharp rebuke from the Delhi High Court last month. But on the ground, hope is wearing thin.
Blocked
The Asola drain, originating in the Aravalis, begins its course near the Radha Soami Ashram in South Delhi. Delhi government records describe it as a natural drainage channel, designed to handle heavy stormwater from its catchment upstream of the Asola Bundh. After branching off from its catchment at the Asola Bundh, the drain cuts through the villages of Asola and Fatehpur Beri. As it crosses the 100-foot-wide SSN Marg, it enters the Valmiki Basti in Asola village. And about 800 m downstream, it empties into a large pond just behind Fatehpur Beri. There is no outlet from this pond, and the water has nowhere to go.
“This water has been collecting for years. When it overflows into our colonies, people fall sick. It spreads all kinds of diseases,” said Rishipal Mahashay, a resident of Fatehpur Beri who has been leading the legal battle to find a solution for the drain, pursuing the matter in both the National Green Tribunal and the Delhi High Court.
“Every time, we are forced to go to court just to get the administration to act. In court, they make promises and say all the right things. But on the ground, nothing really changes,” he added.
The legal tussle
After Mahashay moved the NGT in February 2021, the tribunal directed the Delhi government to look into the matter and take necessary action to fix the problem of flooding. But in August 2023, Mahashay had to approach the Delhi High Court with a complaint that no work was done. The same month, the court told the Delhi government to ensure four points.
“The exit of Fatehpur Beri drain is identified and operationalised; the entire drain is desilted from starting to exit point; the drain is cleared of all plastic and debris from starting to exit point; and all the encroachments on the original drain are removed,” the court order read.
But in April 2025, Mahashay again approached the court over alleged official inaction. The court sought a status report from the Delhi government on April 2. On April 15, the Delhi government filed a one-page status report, stating a meeting was held in the chamber of the assistant district magistrate (south) in this regard. It informed that there was no encroachment in the drain and realignment and proposed outfall of the drain would require acquiring private land. The court came down heavily on laxity of the government as the meeting was held on April 8 despite the court’s directions in 2023.
“It is astonishing that almost two years have lapsed since directions were originally passed on 4th August 2023, noting the seriousness of the issue and the health and safety problem due to the stagnant drain,” the court's order stated.
On Thursday last week, the Delhi government presented a detailed status report in the court. It said that around 12 acres of land have been identified to operationalise the exit point of the Asola drain, based on a plan submitted by a government-appointed surveyor in November last year. But the administration pointed out that this land falls under multiple private holdings.
“Therefore, the said lands need to be acquired so that the exit point of the Asola drain can be constructed,” the report said, adding that details have been submitted to the revenue department and that the matter is currently awaiting further consideration and recommendation from the secretary (land and building).
The report denied the presence of encroachments along the drain route and maintained that the drain flows entirely through privately-owned land, except for its initial 700 m.
The administration also informed the court that the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) is constructing a Sewage Treatment Plant in Fatehpur Beri. “Upon completion, DJB will trap and divert the existing sewer inlets currently discharging into the Asola drain,” the report stated.
It concluded by assuring the court that “action is being taken consistently over a period of time to coordinate and finalise the best possible solution for the management of the Asola drain in a way that offers a feasible resolution”.
But while authorities continue to deliberate and draft plans, villagers in Asola brace themselves for another monsoon.
“We have marked on the wall how high the water reached last year. My only wish is that it doesn’t rise any further this time,” said Krishna, gazing at the stained walls of her home.
“Last year, the water was up to my neck. Every family lost at least Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000,” said Rajendra Dhapoliya, another resident.
‘No encroachments, locals dumping waste’
Among the court’s directions in 2023, one key instruction to the Delhi government was to regularly desilt the Asola drain as a temporary measure. In its latest status report submitted to the court in May, the administration claimed it had carried out desilting work in March this year.
A visit to the site tells a different story. The stretch of the drain running through Asola village, where habitation begins, is so choked with garbage that it resembles more as a dumping ground than a water channel.
To prevent garbage dumping, a small portion of the drain, between SSN Marg and the pond in Valmiki Basti, has been flanked by two four-foot-tall walls, topped with wire fencing. Yet, the entire drain remains clogged with waste.
In its May report, the Delhi government had blamed the villagers, accusing them of habitually using the drain as a dumping ground. It also noted that apart from stormwater, the Asola drain receives a continuous discharge from a PWD drain along SSN Marg, as well as grey water from MCD drains and private inlets from nearby villages. It further acknowledged that the Delhi Jal Board discharges untreated sewage into the drain, as there is no proper sewage system in place for the area.
Newslaundry sent a questionnaire to the South Delhi district magistrate. This copy will be updated if a response is received.
Locals fear the future
Elderly villagers recall a time when the drain had a proper outflow.
“From the pond in Fatehpur Beri, water used to flow downstream towards Madi village, then to Gowal Pahadi in Haryana, and finally to the Ghata Dam,” said Devendra Pradhan, a resident. “But that route was blocked by farmhouses built illegally with the help of local brokers,” he added.
Both Asola and Fatehpur Beri were notorious for illegal farmhouses and encroachments. The Times of India reported in 2018 that 197 acres of land in Asola was found encroached by farmhouses in 2018. Another report claimed many of these encroachments were also on natural drains and water bodies, converting it into land and filling them up with debris and garbage.
The drain is now completely choked with garbage as it enters the residential stretches of Asola village. “The result is that during monsoon, water floods our colony up to four or five feet,” said Devendra Singh, another resident.
To try and keep the water out, many villagers have built high entrances to their homes. In older houses, residents have constructed small cemented walls at their doorsteps, hoping to hold back the rising water. “We have no other choice. But when the rain doesn’t stop, the water flows right over these walls and floods everything,” said Ajad Singh, who’s made similar arrangements to protect his shop in the area.
With no respite in sight, many families have started leaving the area altogether. “I have two sons. Both are married. Now they live elsewhere. Who would want to live surrounded by water?” said Dirwati, standing inside her vacated home.
Ajad Singh said the “only action we’ve seen is a few hours of desilting”. “Just enough to look good in pictures. Then they vanish.”
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