3 min readNew DelhiOct 28, 2024 10:37 AM IST
First published on: Oct 28, 2024 at 04:11 AM IST
Several parts of South and Central Delhi will continue to reel under water shortage till November 1, with maintenance work on the Upper Ganga Canal and high pollution levels in the Yamuna hitting supply and affecting the functioning of two water treatment plants.
The affected areas include prime locations such as Lajpat Nagar, Mayur Vihar, Laxmi Nagar, Preet Vihar, Greater Kailash, Vasant Kunj, Kalkaji, Amar Colony, Panchsheel Park, Sarita Vihar, Malviya Nagar, Geetanjali Enclave and several areas under the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC).
According to the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), the Bhagirathi and Sonia Vihar water treatment plants (WTPs) are functioning only at 30% capacity and have to rely temporarily on the Yamuna.
The Yamuna, however, saw the ammonia levels rise — to more than 1.5 parts per million (ppm) — affecting treatment capacity.
With a capacity of 110 million gallons per day (MGD) and 140 MGD respectively, Bhagirathi and Sonia Vihar WTPs process water from both Ganga and Yamuna rivers.
According to the DJB, until October 21, Ganga water was to be received through ponding at various locations across the Upper Ganga Canal. However, the supply from Ganga was disrupted due to a scheduled annual maintenance work by the Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department. The WTPs were then supposed to be dependent on the Yamuna river for an alternate source of raw water until midnight of October 31. But the high ammonia content in the Yamuna meant that the WTPs could not process raw water from the river.
“Hence, the production at Bhagirathi and Sonia Vihar has been curtailed up to 30% of the capacity. Further, the production would depend entirely upon the quality of raw water in Yamuna. The production from these plants shall vary accordingly,” the water authority stated.
Meanwhile, DJB vice-chairperson Vinay Mishra, who inspected Sonia Vihar WTP, blamed the Haryana government for the alleged discharge of industrial waste. “The Delhi government will soon talk to the Haryana government and resolve this issue so that Delhiites can get clean water. Also, appropriate instructions were given to the officers to ensure that when the quality of water improves, the water treatment plant works at 100% capacity,” he posted on X.
The Delhi government blamed the industrial waste discharge from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh for the rise in ammonia levels in Yamuna, which has now led to a 30% decrease in water production. “Ammonia spikes have been repeatedly detected, most notably in January and February this year, impacting production, especially at the Wazirabad WTP. Recently, ammonia content reached 0.9 ppm, rendering the water unsuitable for treatment and further limiting WTP operations,” it stated.
Yamuna cleaning drive by Delhi Jal Board At Okhla Barrage on Sunday. (Express Photo by Gajendra Yadav) 
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