The directive by Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena to expedite the Yamuna cleaning project is a long-overdue intervention. The river, once a lifeline for Delhi, has now become an open sewer, carrying the burden of untreated sewage, industrial effluents, and domestic waste. While Delhi accounts for only 22 km of the 1,400-km-long Yamuna, it contributes a staggering 75% of its pollution load. At several points, pollutant concentration is 700 times higher than the permissible levels, making the river unfit for even bathing. The new initiative to rejuvenate Yamuna is, therefore, an urgent necessity—but is it destined to meet the same fate as its predecessors?
The proposed four-pronged strategy appears comprehensive: removal of trash and silt, cleaning of major drains, monitoring and upgrading sewage treatment plants (STPs), and constructing new STPs to treat the 400 MGD sewage shortfall. These are essential measures, but similar blueprints have been drawn and abandoned in the past. The fundamental issue has never been a lack of plans, but rather, a chronic failure in implementation. Political infighting, bureaucratic inertia, and a lack of inter-state cooperation have repeatedly derailed previous clean-up efforts.
One of the biggest roadblocks is Delhi’s inadequate sewage infrastructure. While the city generates 790 MGD of sewage, its STPs—at least on paper—have a capacity to treat 700 MGD. However, a Delhi Pollution Control Board report last year revealed that 21 out of 37 STPs do not meet basic standards. More alarmingly, over 70% of these plants lack bacterial disinfection facilities despite repeated National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders. The previous interceptor drain project, launched in 2006 with a budget of Rs 2,400 crore, failed due to missing links between sewer lines and underperforming STPs. Without a holistic approach that integrates infrastructure overhaul with strict enforcement, the new initiative risks becoming another expensive failure.
Additionally, Yamuna’s health is not just Delhi’s problem. The river’s fate is intertwined with its upstream and downstream neighbours. The upcoming renegotiation of the 30-year water-sharing agreement among Yamuna basin states is an opportunity to address long-standing disputes, particularly the Delhi-Haryana standoff over water sharing. Without collaboration between states, any clean-up effort will be akin to treating a poisoned patient without stopping the source of contamination.
A truly effective Yamuna rejuvenation requires more than just desilting and new STPs; it demands political will, stringent regulation, and coordinated action across state lines. If history is any indication, Delhi cannot afford another decade of missed deadlines and wasted funds. The question remains: Will this initiative be a turning point or just another chapter in the river’s slow death?