Wanted: Fresh water for the Yamuna; govt seeks bidders

NEW DELHI, MARCH 26: The Delhi government has accused Haryana of dumping its industrial wastes in the Yamuna. This is in addition to the domestic affluents already being dumped in the river from the 18 drains that carry the Capital’s sewage. This means that about 2,300 million litres daily (MLD) of untreated domestic waste water flows into the Yamuna from Delhi alone.

To save the river, says the Health Minister A.K. Walia, “a minimum of 10 cusecs of fresh water should be pumped into the stretch below Wazirabad, for which we need a agreement with riparian states which again is a subject of the Centre.” Replying to a private member’s resolution on Yamuna pollution, Health Minister A.K. Walia said: “There has been no improvement in terms of our request to Haryana asking them to close polluting units in the state which lead to pollution of the Yamuna.” The resolution, however, was defeated as the Delhi government specified the action it had taken on the Yamuna Action Plan.

Walia told the Assembly: “The Delhi government, through a series of meetings with the Haryana Pollution Control Board and Central Pollution Control Board, had said that the distilleries, tanneries and other highly-polluting units in Haryana must be shut down. But no action has been taken yet.”

He also announced that there are about 1,000 water polluting units in non-conforming areas of which 400 have been identified as grossly polluting. “Action is being taken to ensure installation of pollution control devices failing which recalcitrant units shall be shut down,” he said.