Yamuna clean-up commences

The much-awaited cleaning of the Yamuna officially began on Sunday, with Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena inaugurating a comprehensive plan to rejuvenate the heavily polluted water body.

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The initiative comes after years of delay, with the government rolling out a structured three-year roadmap to tackle the pollution crisis.

According to the L-G office, the clean-up effort will involve the use of trash skimmers, weed harvesters and dredge utility crafts to clear waste from the river.

Additionally, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) has been tasked with taking strict action against industrial units that continue to discharge untreated effluents into the drains.

On X, the L-G office announced the development, stating “As vowed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Assembly elections, efforts to clean the Yamuna commenced on Sunday with trash skimmers, weed cutters and dredge utility crafts already operational.”

Elaborating on the four-pronged strategy being implemented, the L-G office highlighted that the first step would focus on removing trash, garbage, and silt from the river’s stream.

Simultaneously, clean-up operations will be extended to major drains, including the Najafgarh Drain and Supplementary Drain.

The plan also includes a daily watch on the existing sewage treatment plants (STPs) in terms of their capacity and output, ensuring that they function effectively. Furthermore, a time-bound plan is being put in place to construct new STPs and decentralised sewage treatment plants (DSTPs) to bridge the shortfall in treating approximately 400 million gallons per day (MGD) of sewage.

The L-G office further added that the initiative would require collaboration between various government agencies, including the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), Irrigation and Flood Control (I&FC), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Environment Department, Public Works Department (PWD) and Delhi Development Authority (DDA).

Monitoring will also take place at the highest level, with progress being reviewed on a weekly basis.

The L-G office noted that the rejuvenation efforts were set in motion in January 2023 when the National Green Tribunal (NGT) formed a high-level committee (HLC) under the chairmanship of the Governor.