Delhi Cong chief demands probe into Rs 6K crore 'Yamuna cleaning scam'

Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Devender Yadav has written to the Lieutenant-Governor demanding a comprehensive probe into what he termed a 'Rs 6,856 crore scam' by the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in the name of cleaning the Yamuna.

Yadav alleged that both the AAP and the BJP had “played with the sentiments of Delhi's people”. He said that despite huge expenditure over the years, the condition of the river was still deplorable.

“The BJP and the AAP were not at all serious about the health of the residents, as for over 11 years, the Kejriwal government and the Rekha Gupta government for the last 8 months had failed to control air and water pollution. Shockingly, 15 out of 100 deaths occurring in the Capital were due to pollution,” Yadav stated.

Citing a report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), he said that “despite spending Rs 6,856 crore on cleaning the Yamuna from 2017 to 2022, there has been no significant improvement in the condition of the river.”

Yadav said the Yamuna held deep cultural and religious importance for Delhiites, yet successive governments “only misled the people with false promises about cleaning the river, but did not do any work at the ground level.”

Highlighting the lack of progress, Yadav said, “Out of the 37 treatment plants, 26 are not working as per standards and 171 million gallons per day (MGD) of sewage from Wazirabad and Okhla Barrages falls directly into the Yamuna.” He urged for immediate intervention and accountability.