Shocking report on Yamuna river water, 23 sites fail water quality test
A parliamentary committee has given a shocking report on the condition of the Yamuna river. According to the parliamentary committee, life is hardly possible with the water of Yamuna in Delhi. The quality of water was found to be very poor at 23 out of 33 places. Water is not potable at 6 places in Delhi itself. Apart from Delhi, the situation is also bad in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The report states that even after building a sewage treatment plant (STP), pollution has not reduced. The committee has asked everyone to work together to clean the river and remove encroachment.
Report of the Parliamentary Committee on Yamuna
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources has presented a report on the cleaning project of the Yamuna river and riverside management in Delhi. This report states that the quality of water in a 40-km stretch of the Yamuna river in Delhi is very poor. Yamuna enters Delhi from Palla in Haryana and exits from Asgarpur in Uttar Pradesh.
Yamuna water has almost no dissolved oxygen – Report
The report states that the level of dissolved oxygen in the water is almost negligible in Delhi. This means that the Delhi part of the Yamuna river is not conducive to life. Despite the construction of sewage treatment plants (STPs), the level of pollution in Yamuna is worrying.
23 out of 33 places failed the quality test
Between January 2021 and May 2023, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) along with the State Pollution Control Boards conducted water quality tests at 33 places. In this investigation, four important parameters like dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and fecal coliform (FC) were observed.
Water quality fine in Uttarakhand-Himachal
The investigation revealed that the water quality at all four places in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh was as per the standards. At the same time, water did not meet the standards at all six places in Haryana. In Delhi, water quality was not good at any of the seven places in 2021. However, some improvement was seen in Palla in 2022 and 2023. The committee has urged all the concerned parties to work together to clean the river and improve its health.
Situation very bad in Delhi, UP, Haryana
Encroachment is also a big problem along the Yamuna. Delhi and Haryana have reported encroachment, but complete information from Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand is yet to be received. Despite being important for flood control, the floodplain of Yamuna has not been demarcated in Uttar Pradesh.
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has freed about 477.79 hectares of land from flood areas from encroachment. However, encroachment still continues in some places due to litigation. The committee has urged the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation to work with the DDA and state governments to remove encroachment and restore the ecosystem of the floodplain.
