Delhi PWD sacks engineer over pictures of workers cleaning drains gearless, deletes X post
New Delhi, Jun 3 (PTI): A Delhi Public Works Department official was suspended Tuesday after the civic body's post on X showing workers desilting drains without safety gear was met with backlash online.
However, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta maintained her government was following all the court-mandated guidelines for desilting.
Earlier in the day, the PWD posted four pictures on X depicting half-naked workers engaged in the cleaning of drains.
The post was later deleted after several X users criticised the government over the apparent apathy towards the workers' safety.
At a press conference, when she was asked about the post, Gupta said not every drain can be cleaned with machines.
"Every drain has its own situation. At every drain, machines might not be able to work. It might be possible that there was a drain where the machines were not able to work. The government's target is to completely desilt all the drains. The work is being carried out keeping court guidelines in mind," she said.
A senior official from PWD said a junior engineer has been suspended since the workers were not operating in safety gear.
"The work that was being carried out was regarding desilting of a stormwater drain and not a sewer line, hence, it can not be called manual scavenging work. But still, as the workers were seen not operating in complete safety gear, the junior engineer concerned for the work has been suspended for lack of supervision, and other officials have been warned," the official said.
More than 400 people died while cleaning septic tanks and sewers in India between 2018 and 2023, according to data shared with the Parliament in 2023.
According to the data, 76 deaths occurred in 2018, 133 in 2019, 35 in 2020, 66 in 2021, 84 in 2022 and 49 in 2023.
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Passing out parade held at IMA Dehradun, 491 young officers join Indian Army
Dehradun(PTI): After undergoing rigorous training at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun, 491 cadets participated in a grand Passing Out Parade on Saturday and will now be commissioned as officers in the Indian Army.
The spectacular parade, held at the historic Drill Square in front of the academy's Chatwood Building, was reviewed by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who served as the reviewing officer.
Along with 491 Indian cadets, 34 foreign cadets from 14 friendly countries also participated in the Autumn Term 2025 Passing Out Parade.
A total of 525 officer cadets from the 157th Regular Course, 46th Technical Entry Scheme, 140th Technical Graduate Course, 55th Special Commissioned Officers Course, and Territorial Army Online Entrance Exam 2023 Course participated in the Passing Out Parade.
The 'Sword of Honour' and gold medal for securing first place during training was awarded to ACA Nishkal Dwivedi, the silver medal to BUO Badal Yadav for second place, and the bronze medal to SUO Kamaljeet Singh for third place.
The silver medal for securing first place in the 'Technical Graduate Course' was awarded to Officer Cadet Jadhav Sujit Sampat, and the silver medal for first place in the 'Technical Entry Scheme-46' was awarded to WCC Abhinav Mehrotra.
The silver medal for the 'Special Commission Officer Course' was given to Officer Cadet Sunil Kumar Chhetri.
Among the foreign cadets, the first place in merit was secured by JUO Mohammad Safin Ashraf from Bangladesh. The Army Chief's Banner for overall best performance in the Autumn Term was awarded to Imphal Company.
As the parade concluded, helicopters showered flowers on the newly commissioned officers from the sky.
On this occasion, General Dwivedi congratulated the new officers in his address for successfully completing their training. He praised the young officers for their high level of discipline, leadership qualities, and endurance, and urged them to uphold the glorious traditions of the Indian Army and serve the nation with loyalty, commitment, and honour.
General Dwivedi said that joining the army marks the beginning of a lifelong duty and selfless service.
The parents and guardians of the newly commissioned officers were also present during the passing out parade.
