Soon, Yamuna to be part of syllabus, says Sisodia

NEW DELHI: With an aim to educate youngsters about the importance of Yamuna, the Delhi government has decided to include it in the syllabus. The government has also demanded Rs 5,000 crore from the Centre to clean and develop the river, serving as the lifeline of the national Capital.

“We will teach our students the current situation and importance of the Yamuna. This topic will soon be included in the syllabus,” said Manish Sisodia, Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister who is also the Education Minister. He was addressing the gathering on the occasion of Yamuna Aarti being celebrated by the Delhi government’s Tourism Department. The aarti began with prayers by priests followed by aarti on the pattern of Ganga Aarti in Varanasi. Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian and Jain priests participated in the multi-faith prayer for restoration of the river. According to Hindu traditions, Yamuna is considered sister of Yam and therefore, the Delhi government decided to celebrate Yamuna Aarti on the occasion of Bhai Duj. “Our government is working very fast despite the obstacles being created by the Central government,” he added. He further informed that the government is working to ensure Biodiversity Park becomes functional in the next two months at Geeta Ghat. A boat-racing competition was also organised at Yamuna Ghat at Sonia Vihar between local youths and BSF personnel. Delhi Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra informed that he had demanded Rs 5,000 crore from Union Minister for Water Uma Bharti. “We will start the work of Riverfront development with Rs 25 lakh in the next two months. In the first stage, a 5 km Riverfront will be developed,” said Mishra. He added that concrete will not be used in the Riverfront project. “We are going to organise an international seminar on Yamuna in February next year in which a strategy would be finalised to promote various sports in the river,” added Mishra.