Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena has directed officials to ensure treatment of 95 per cent of sewage water flowing into the Yamuna and tangible improvements in the river's pollution level by June-end.
The LG chaired a meeting of a high-level committee for rejuvenation of the river on Friday, according to an official statement. He also issued directions for treatment of 100 per cent of sewage water draining into the river by December this year.
It was discussed in the meeting that pre-fabricated decentralised sewage treatment plants (DSTPs) will be set up in the city's 81 slum clusters, where laying of sewerage lines is not feasible, by June with support from the National Mission for Clean Ganga. A total of 263 unauthorised colonies in the city will have sewer lines by June-end, the statement said.
Currently, Delhi generates 768 million gallons per day (MGD) of sewage, of which 75.5 per cent (580 MGD) is treated. The committee is monitoring processes that will ensure treatment of 727 MGD (95 per cent) of sewage by June. It also aims at achieving total treatment capacity of 814 MGD by December 2023 and 964.5 MGD by June 2024, the statement said.
Saxena, the chairman of the high-level committee set up by the National Green Tribunal, reviewed the progress of works undertaken for cleaning the Yamuna, including 100 per cent treatment of sewage, trapping of drains, and construction of sewerage networks in unauthorised colonies and slum clusters among others.
The LG underlined that even as works on restoration of floodplains, trapping of drains, desilting of sewage lines and construction of STPs were going ahead as per schedule, it was essential that all work is undertaken on mission mode with the goal to achieve tangible improvement in the pollution levels in the river by June 2023.
It was informed that ever since efforts to clean the Najafgarh drain began, the biological oxygen demand (BOD) levels in the drain has shown a consistent decline, it said. The decline was also reflected in the BOD levels in the Yamuna at ISBT, where the Najafgarh drain meets the river. The levels, however, were fluctuating on a month-to-month basis, and the same needed to be stabilised and brought further down, the LG stressed.
The committee is pushing for construction of three new STPs at Okhla, Delhi Gate and Sonia Vihar, and 40 new DSTPs at various locations, along with rehabilitation of three existing STPs and upgradation of 18 existing STPs. The allotment of land for the purpose of construction of these plants that had been pending for the past eight years were completed in the last month, with active intervention of the LG, the statement said.
Since the committee started monitoring works, sewerage networks in 102 unauthorised colonies have been installed by March and another 161 colonies will get sewer lines by June 2023, it said.
Further, 71 colonies will get sewer networks by September and 239 colonies by December. Of the 1,799 unauthorised colonies, 1,320 will accordingly have sewer networks by December this year, while 318 are such where works on DSTPs is under progress, the statement said.
The LG was informed in the meeting that 180 registered vehicles carrying septage will now be monitored by a dedicated agency through GPS tracking so as to ensure collection and disposal. Restoration and rejuvenation work on the Yamuna floodplains through 10 projects at different locations are ongoing and desired results have been achieved at Baansera, Asita East and the Amrit Bio-diversity Park, officials said in the meeting.
Work is in progress at Asita West, Kalindi Bio-diversity Park, Mayur Nature Park and Yamuna Vanasthali, and these are expected to be completed within stipulated timelines.
