Yamuna Pollution: 23 Of 33 Monitoring Sites Fail Water Quality Tests
A Parliamentary Committee has warned that pollution levels are alarmingly high in the Yamuna stretches in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
A parliamentary committee has reported that 23 out of 33 monitoring sites of the Yamuna do not meet the primary water quality standards. These locations include six in Delhi. The Yamuna River flows through a 40 km stretch in Delhi, entering from Haryana at Palla and exiting towards Uttar Pradesh at Asgarpur.
In its report presented to Parliament on Tuesday, March 11, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources stated that the dissolved oxygen (DO) level in the river, which indicates the river's capacity to sustain life, was found to be almost negligible in Delhi.
In its report on the Upper Yamuna River Cleaning Project in Delhi and riverbed management, the committee warned that despite the construction and upgrading of sewage treatment plants (STPs) in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, pollution levels remain alarmingly high.
The committee called for coordinated efforts from all stakeholders to tackle pollution and restore the river's condition. It stated that out of 33 monitoring sites, only four in Uttarakhand and four in Himachal Pradesh meet primary water quality standards.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), along with state pollution control boards, assessed water quality at 33 locations between January 2021 and May 2023. The assessment included four key parameters: dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and faecal coliform (FC).
The analysis revealed that all four monitoring sites in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh met the required standards, while all six sites in Haryana failed. In Delhi, none of the seven sites were found compliant in 2021, although improvements were seen in Palla in 2022 and 2023.
The committee expressed particular concern over encroachments on the Yamuna's floodplains. According to the report, Delhi and Haryana provided information on encroachments, while Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand have yet to provide complete details.
The committee highlighted that the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) has freed approximately 477.79 hectares of land from encroachments along the flood-prone areas. However, due to ongoing litigation, some parts of the flood-prone area remain occupied. The report stated that the debris accumulated in the Yamuna riverbed remains a major concern.
A study conducted by the Delhi Irrigation and Flood Control Department in collaboration with CSIR-NEERI found that samples of debris collected upstream of the old iron bridge, Geeta Colony, and the DND flyover during the pre-monsoon period showed high levels of heavy metals such as chromium, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc.
The committee recommended controlled dredging to remove this toxic waste and warned that it poses a serious health hazard and contributes to the deterioration of the river's water quality. However, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has expressed concern that large-scale dredging could destabilise the riverbed and further damage the environment.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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