Delhi Jal Board sets target of 1,000 MGD water supply during summer

The target for last year was 988mgd, but the water utility exceeded its mandate, managing to supply up to 1000mgd to the city on certain days

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB), as part of its summer action plan, has set a target of supplying 1,000 million gallons per day (mgd) of water across the city, officials aware of the objective said on Wednesday. The water utility will also begin increasing the number of tankers supplying water to water-stressed areas, with tubewells to also augment the supply of water in Delhi, the officials said.

A reservoir and treatment plant of the Delhi Jal Board in Wazirabad. (ANI)

The target for last year was 988mgd, but the water utility exceeded its mandate, managing to supply up to 1000mgd to the city on certain days.

Delhi depends on neighbouring states to meet around 90% of its drinking water demand — through the Yamuna, the carrier lined channel (CLC) Munak, and the Delhi sub-branch (DSB) canals from Haryana, and through the Upper Ganga Canal via Muradnagar from Uttar Pradesh — with the water routed through nine water treatment plants (WTPs) that DJB operates — Chandrawal, Wazirabad, Haiderpur, Nangloi, Okhla, Dwarka, Bawana, Bhagirathi, and Sonia Vihar.

The remaining 10% demand is met through internal water sources — primarily tubewells and ranney wells.

A DJB official aware of the summer action plan said that measures to augment the water supply have already either been put in place or are in the final stages of being enhanced. “We are optimising all resources to push WTPs by pushing them to produce 1-2mgd extra water at places like Haiderpur, Chandrawal, Dwarka, Bhagirathi, and Sonia Vihar. The number of operational tubewells has been increased from 5,498 last year to 5,726,” the official said, on condition of anonymity.

Environmental activist Diwan Singh, who organised the Yamuna Satyagrah to rejuvenate the river and other water bodies in the city, said that while groundwater extraction within justifiable limits can be carried out in areas where groundwater levels are high, DJB should ensure that the ecology of these areas is not impacted due to large-scale water extraction.

“Every aquifer has a limit — groundwater extraction beyond that leads to contamination and mixing of saline layers. The government needs to define these limits urgently. We cannot go on exploiting groundwater endlessly,” he said.

To be sure, according to the economic survey presented by the Delhi government in March, Delhi’s current requirement of water is 1,290 mgd for an estimated population of 21.5 million — leading to a demand-supply gap of more than 290 mgd.

Singh said that Delhi’s water demand needs to be lowered at the city planning level. “The city should be maximally locally sustainable. We are not even meeting 50% of our demand locally. The Central and state governments are not paying attention to the limited resources in Delhi. If the city keeps on expanding in this unplanned manner, from where will we source additional water? Delhi is not reusing and recycling its grey water resources,” he said.

Over the past decade, the network of water supply pipes in Delhi has seen a rapid expansion — the city has 1,799 unauthorised colonies, of which water supply lines have been laid in 1,638, and work is in progress in several more.

Currently, DJB is using a mix of water tanker-based supply and new tubewells to supply water to these areas. “During the peak summer months of May-June, 961 tankers will be deployed, of which 811 have been hired. The number of tankers was 776 in February, 779 in March and 899 in April. However, the overall number of tankers is less than the 1,047 tankers targeted in the 2023 action plan. More than 8,700 fixed water supply points have been marked for these tankers which has been increased from 6050 supply points last year,” the official quoted above said.

This year’s summer action plan also notes that pumps in the city’s WTPs have been upgraded, and pumping installations have been overhauled. “Continuous monitoring will be carried out in close coordination with Haryana to prevent shutdown of WTPs on account of high ammonia levels in raw water. Stock position of consumables such as disinfectants, coagulants, spares for pumps and motors has been reviewed,” the official said.

Ashok Bhasin, who heads the North Delhi Resident’s Welfare Federation, said DJB makes extensive plans every year, but its helplines become non-responsive when the city’s water supply is hit.

“Tankers become hard to access, and even if you get one, it is usually in the second half of the day —the maximum water requirement is in the morning. DJB needs to improve its response time. The water utility also needs to maintain water pressure. When the pressure is low, people tend to store additional water, leading to wastage. A reliable water supply ensures less wastage,” he said.