Delhi water board to provide free septage collection to curb dumping in Yamuna

Delhi water minister Parvesh Verma said they will do away with the existing system of using empanelled private contractors

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has decided to provide free septic tank cleaning and septage collection services to unauthorisedcolonies, villages and slum clusters, to curb sewage inflow to the Yamuna and also check illegal manual scavenging, officials aware of the matter said on Sunday.

Dumping of septage by private contractors is a concern. (HT Archive)

Delhi water minister Parvesh Verma said they will do away with the existing system of using empanelled private contractors. The project will benefit at least 1.2-1.5 million households, he said.

“Under the current system, a list of private empanelled contractors is permitted to clean septic tanks and take it to the sewage treatment facilities. The system has leakages and there are complaints that the septage is dumped in drains and open areas, ultimately polluting the Yamuna. These private vendors charge ₹2,000 to ₹3,000 for these services, but the DJB will carry out this work free of cost. Under the revised system, DJB tankers will be deployed for this work. A helpline number will soon be issued,” Verma said.

The problem of untreated sewage and septage from colonies without sewage connections is a major hurdle to reviving the Yamuna. According to DJB data, sewer lines have been laid in only 1,226 of 1,799 unauthorised colonies in Delhi, while work in 154areas is underway. The water utility has set a target of covering the remaining areas by 2028. According to the water board’s septage management regulations of 2018, 154private contractors have been authorised to collect and dispose of septage. These contractors are expected to send this to 86 collection points at sewage pumping stations; the current collection and disposal rates are around 1.078 million litres per day.

A DJB official said they found many private septic tank cleaners illegally dumping septage in nearby drains or open spaces, to save costs. “Moreover, some people also hire non-empanelled contractors to get the work done cheaper. It leaves people vulnerable to manual scavenging. If DJB provided free cleaning service, people would also prefer to use this service and work will be carried out with all necessary safety precautions. It would also help in cleaning the Yamuna,” the official said.

Minister Verma said that private operators will be stopped. “Most of the existing 150 tankers are from Noida, Bahadurgah and NCR. It will be a crucial step in cleaning Yamuna and preventing untreated waste from reaching the river. Septage will be treated at STPs and treated water will be released. Until these areas are equipped with sewer lines, it is the DJB’s duty to provide these services,” he said.

Verma said that around 200 tankers will be deployed and more added, based on requirement.

The DJB official said that under the Yamuna action plan, the board is also planning to set up Faecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTPs) in Delhi’s peri-urban areas. “NMCG (National Mission for Clean Ganga) has principally agreed to fund such FSTPs,” the official said.

Despite mandating GPS systems for such tanker operators, DJB flagged discrepancies in the operations of private contractors. “DJB could monitor movement of the tractors only from one location to another. The GPS movement could not mention whether starting or ending location is premises of users or drain or any other area... As no sensors are fitted to the tractors, it could not be ascertained how much septage is lifted from premises and disposed of at designated disposal locations,” a DJB report said.