Delhi Budget 2025: Streamlining water supply proposed

Delhi government plans ₹9,000 crore for clean water projects, aiming to boost supply, reduce losses, and improve management amid rising demand.

The Delhi government has proposed projects to streamline supply of clean drinking water in the city, which included minimising losses from canals carrying raw water to Delhi, reducing leakages, complete automation of monitoring mechanism along with development and revival of waterbodies, borewells and Ranney wells.

Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta interacts with residents during a visit to take stock of the water supply system in Shalimar Bagh. (@gupta_rekha)

These measures are part of the ₹9,000 crore allocation to the water and sanitation sector and the BJP government’s broader plan to bridge the water demand-supply gap.

Currently, the city’s water demand is 1,290 MGD (million gallons per day), while it can only treat and supply 1,000 MGD of water.

The situation worsens during peak summer period when the water demand spikes and the raw water availability in the river channel goes down. The BJP government has allocated ₹150 crore for emergency water storage for such periods.

CM Rekha Gupta has also proposed ₹ 50 crore for extending piped water supply in deprived areas. For areas where water tankers go, “we are going to install a GPS system and will develop an Android mobile app “DJB Tanker” through which citizens will be able to monitor and track the tankers coming to their area,” she added.

Meanwhile, the government has also decided to undertake consultancy services for water sector projects at a cost ₹10 crore. “The government will also invest ₹150 crore in automation, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) System and Intelligent Metering to make water management more effective,” the chief minister said.

The new BJP government has also decided to demand a financial assistance of ₹2,000 crore from the Centre for the same.

The party in its poll manifesto had promised that it will increase Delhi’s water treatment capacity to 1,500 MGD and establish additional reservoirs to enhance water storage and pumping capacity; reduce the current non-revenue water from 58% to 20% and reduce water loss in the Munak Canal to 5%.