Yamuna short of water, says DJB, asks Haryana to ramp up supply
NEW DELHI: Amid extreme weather conditions and an ongoing heatwave in Delhi, the water level in the Yamuna has gone down, with the shortage resulting in supply cuts in some parts of the Capital and forcing the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to seek release of additional water in the river from neighbouring Haryana.A senior DJB official said the water level at Wazirabad pond on Saturday fell below the normal level of 674.5 feet, to a “critical low of 673.7 feet”.
“Even the raw water flow through carrier lined canal (CLC) and Delhi sub branch (DSB) (two canals that carry water from Haryana to Delhi) is currently fluctuating... This has affected the lifting of 120 cusec of water from Wazirabad pond due to low pond level. This can affect water production adversely,” said an SOS sent by DJB to the Haryana irrigation department on Saturday.
The communication, a copy of which HT has seen, asked the Haryana government to supply additional 150 cusec of raw water through the Yamuna to ensure that 120 cusec of raw water reaches Wazirabad pond, noting that the city’s water requirement is higher due to the pandemic and peak summer. It asks Haryana to release additional water till monsoon, when the water level picks up in the
Yamuna.Haryana government officials did not respond to requests seeking a comment.
A water deficient state, Delhi already faces a shortfall of more than 380 MGD.
The Delhi government’s economic survey 2021-22 said the total requirement of water was around 1,380 MGD in 2021. The state has targeted a peak water supply of 998MGD under its summer action plan for the year.
With the volume of water flowing through the Yamuna, CLC and DSB canals low, DJB officials said that maintaining the water production level at water treatment plants (WTP) at Chandrawal, Wazirabad, Nangloi, Haiderpur and Dwarka is under threat.
Additionally, the Haiderpur WTP, the largest in the city which supplies almost a quarter of Delhi’s water supply, is facing operational problems. DJB, in a statement on Saturday, said the Haiderpur plant’s production has been low for the past few days due to “excessive floating material” choking its filter beds.
“We have started the cleaning of filter bed without compromising on the production. Production should become normal by May 1 evening. DJB is endeavouring to rationalise the water supply but water will be available at low pressure till the situation improves in parts of northwest Delhi, west Delhi, parts of south Delhi and the command area of Deer Park,” the statement said.
Water woes in parts of city
Meanwhile, parts of the city have faced shortages over the last week.The Vasant Vihar Welfare Association took to social media to flag water shortage for the last three days at the colony. Some parts of the south Delhi neighbourhood received some water on Saturday. Suresh Goel, a resident of Vasant Vihar, said they received water for a short while on Saturday. “We have been facing supply issues for a week, but the problem got acute over the last three days,” he said.
Shahbaz Singh, a resident of west Delhi’s Rajouri Garden, said a similar situation prevails in the area’s J-12 block where “taps have been running dry for three days”.
Priyanka Aggarwal, who lives in south Delhi’s Deoli, said residents in her area have been facing water shortage for the last four days.