For Yamuna’s residents, going home is not an option any time soon

Along the pavement of Vikas Marg, not far from the ITO bridge, a few tents have been set up for those who moved from the floodplains, while others have set up their own tents in between the ones raised by the administration.

Prem Nath (28) who grows vegetables on the floodplains, said he moved to the pavement with his family on Tuesday morning. While the tents have been raised, there are no toilets in the area yet, he said. “Since there are no toilets here, the children need to cross the busy road to relieve themselves in the open. But the conditions are not as bad as they used to be in previous years. We get enough food twice a day, and a tanker supplies water. There were times earlier when there was no food,” said Prem Nath, from Badaun in Uttar Pradesh, who has been living on the floodplains for around 15 years.

“We have not seen the water levels get this high, and even when it is not so high, we need to wait a few weeks before the level falls completely,” he added.

Kishan (15), who moved with his family to six tents set up by the administration, said a carpet had been laid on the floor of the tents, and they had brought their cots up from the floodplains themselves. A light bulb has been set up in tents, and in theirs, they had also attempted to set up a small fan. “When it rains, the roof of the tent begins to leak,” said Kishan, who helps on the family’s farmland and does not go to school. Delhi saw light rainfall on Thursday.

Roshni (40), who also lives in a makeshift tent in the area, said, “Even when the water rises every year, it takes a few weeks before the area dries up completely. This time, with the level of the water, it will take a lot longer.”

Ramesh Chand (65), who grows roses and vegetables on the floodplains, recalls 1978 when water levels in the Yamuna rose significantly. “The last time I remember seeing so much water was in 1978, and the area around the Kashmere Gate ISBT and Nigambodh Ghat was affected. This time, we have lost more than we usually do,” he said.

On the water that has submerged the floodplain, Bhim Singh Rawat, associate coordinator of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, said, “The floodplain is a sandy area and it will absorb the floodwater. The time it can take will vary from place to place, as it either percolates slowly into the ground or recedes along with the level of the river. In some areas that lie outside the main course of the river, it could take one to three weeks.”