Delhi poll currents push Haryana towards tackling Yamuna pollution

Pollution in Yamuna has always been a huge issue. Now, given that it became a big political issue during the last-held Delhi Assembly polls, the Haryana and Delhi governments are taking it very seriously.In a meeting of the River Rejuvenation Committee (RRC), held under the chairmanship of Anurag Rastogi, Chief Secretary, Haryana, recently, several decisions to curb the pollution of the Yamuna were taken.The Chief Secretary has formed a special committee under the chairmanship of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) Chairman to keep a watch on the pollution level of 11 drains of the state that meet the Yamuna.The RRC noted that industries, along with these drains, were significant polluters of the Yamuna.From where does the Yamuna enter Haryana?The Yamuna is the largest tributary of the Ganga. It originates from the Yamunotri glacier in Uttarakhand and merges with the Ganga at Sangam in Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh). The total length of the Yamuna from Yamunotri to Prayagraj is 1,376 km, and its catchment area is over 3.67 lakh sq km. Yamuna enters Haryana in Yamunanagar district, and covers Karnal, Panipat and Sonepat districts, then entering Delhi, and again routing to Haryana’s Faridabad and Palwal. It then enters Uttar Pradesh. Yamuna flows for around 320 km in Haryana.What is the condition of Haryana’s drains?Twelve drains meet the Yamuna in the state. According to data, Ditch drain in Yamunanagar; Dhanaura escape in Karnal; Drain 2 in Panipat; Drain 6 in Panipat and Sonepat districts; the entry point of the KCB drain to Delhi (Jhajjar); entry point of Drain 8 to Delhi (Jhajjar); entry point of Mungeshpur drain to Delhi (Jhajjar); Leg 1 drain before meeting Najafgarh drain (Gurugram); Leg 2 drain before meeting Najafgarh drain (Gurugram); Leg 3 drain before meeting Najafgarh drain (Gurugram); Budhiya Nala in Faridabad; and Gaunchi drain in Palwal meet the Yamuna in the state. In Panipat, Drain 2 meets the Yamuna at Khojkipur village. As per HSPCB reports, which compiled data from 2022 to 2025, the value of biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the drains has been found to be increasing.What action will the special committee take?To curb the Yamuna’s pollution, the Chief Secretary has constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the HSPCB Chairman. The committee includes the HSPCB Member Secretary, PHED Engineer-in-Chief, Irrigation Department Engineer-in-Chief, Urban Local Bodies Department Chief Engineer, Development and Panchayat Department Chief Engineer, and the HSIIDC Chief Engineer. The committee would monitor progress pertaining to the treatment of wastewater at various points/sub-drains entering the Yamuna through the 11 major drains, as mentioned in the drain-wise action plan for each pollution source. It would also monitor the progress of construction of new sewage treatment plants (STPs), STPs under upgrades, and construction of proposed STPs, the progress of common effluent treatment plants (CETPs), the progress of completion of sewerage network in towns falling under the Yamuna catchment, and the progress of installation of wastewater treatment systems to treat wastewater of villages falling under Yamuna catchment area.What is the status of STPs in Haryana?According to the HSPCB, there are 90 STPs with a capacity of 1,518 million litre per day (MLD) in the Yamuna catchment area, against the estimated generation of 1,239 MLD sewage. The capacity of STPs stands at 67.5 MLD in Yamunanagar; 108 MLD in Karnal; 163.8 MLD in Panipat; 80.5 MLD in Sonepat; 64.5 MLD in Bahadurgarh (Jhajjar); 415 MLD in Gurugram; 299.5 MLD in Faridabad; and 27.5 MLD in Palwal.How many water polluting industries are there in Haryana?As per the HSPCB, there are around 3,240 water polluting industries in the state, with these generating approximately 210 MLD industrial effluent. Out of these, 2,080 units have their own effluent treatment plants, while 1,180 are connected with CETPs. At present, 17 CETPs of 198 MLD capacity are operational in the state, while seven CETPs of 126.5 MLD capacity have been proposed.What action has been taken to reduce industrial pollution?The Chief Secretary has directed the HSPCB to issue directions under the Water Act (1974) to all industries to install separate energy metres on their ETPs and STPs. Officials have been told to ensure that all these energy meters are sealed by HSPCB officials in the presence of officials of the Electricity Department. Each industry shall maintain a separate record of the daily consumption of electricity, and these shall be submitted to the HSPCB after every 15 days. The Chief Secretary has also directed the HSPCB Chairman and Member Secretary to depute teams to check the operational status of ETPs/STPs of industries, and units of electricity consumed by them.

Delhi poll currents push Haryana towards tackling Yamuna pollution

Mukesh Tandon

Tribune News Service

Delhi poll currents push Haryana towards tackling Yamuna pollution

Mukesh Tandon

Tribune News Service

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