Yamuna clean-up op: Delhi govt to map drains, plug sewage leaks

Cleaning the Yamuna and making it pollution-free is one of the top priorities of the BJP government. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have held meetings in this regard in the past two months.

Officials said the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has asked to prepare a plan and hire an agency to identify gaps and disconnected drains and sewers and assess the sewerage zones.

“The department concerned has directed to hire an agency by the end of this month. The process has begun, and the survey will be completed by September… Based on the identified gaps, detailed project reports (DPRs) will be prepared by project engineers. Projects will be structured accordingly, and the estimated timeline for this is set for December this year,” said a senior official.

The CPCB will also conduct inspections to identify operational gaps. “All existing STPs and their outfalls will be inspected by the CPCB to assess operational shortcomings. For this, the timeline has been set for July 2025. Following its report, the DJB will formulate an action plan… The target for the work is set for October this year, ” said an official.

Officials said over the last few years, the DJB has been working on the Interceptor Sewer Project — it entails trapping all drains and diverting wastewater to the nearby STP.

However, there are some large drains like Najafgarh and Shahdara where it is not possible to tap them fully, due to which, eventually, untreated water enters the river. “For such drains, solutions need to be considered, such as tapping 26 out of 182 sub-drains and treating the remaining at their outlets,” read a government document.

Officials said 9 out of 22 drains that flow directly into the river have been trapped. Two drains have been partially trapped. Full trapping of drains is set to be completed by December 2027.

“Trapping work for two drains is in progress and is likely to be completed by the end of this year. Meanwhile, 7 drains have not yet been trapped, and no diversion has been made to the sewer/STP for treatment. The deadline to complete this work has been set for December 2027,” said an official.

Under this project, the Delhi government also plans to install sewer connections in all unauthorised colonies. Recently, the central government approved Rs 804 crore for this project under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme 2.0.

The government plans to install around 13,000 new sewer connections in slum areas, and 2.5 lakh sewer connections in unauthorised colonies and other residential areas.