Fix recurring water shortage problem, Raghav Chadhav asks Haryana CM in letter
Raghav Chadha, in his letter to Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday, said that Delhi was facing a double whammy because of a significant reduction in raw water supply and high ammonia levels in the Yamuna water released from Haryana.
Delhi Jal Board vice-chairperson Raghav Chadha on Wednesday wrote to Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, seeking prompt solutions to the recurring water shortage problems in Delhi that the utility has long blamed on the neighbouring state.
Chadha, who is also an Aam Aadmi Party MLA, on Tuesday warned that large parts of Delhi are likely to witness a shortage of water starting Wednesday, as Haryana, in violation of the Supreme Court guidelines, was sharing a lower than the mandated portion of Yamuna water with Delhi, and was not adhering to safe pollution levels.
Chadha, in his letter to Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar on Wednesday, said that Delhi was facing a double whammy because of a significant reduction in raw water supply and high ammonia levels in the Yamuna water released from Haryana.
“Delhi is facing frequent crises in terms of raw water supply... which adversely impacts the drinking water supply of major areas, including diplomatic missions/embassies, President House, Supreme Court, high court, and at hospitals treating Covid-19 patients of Delhi and neighbouring states. I implore you to, and I am sure you will, extend your cooperation on humanitarian grounds keeping in mind unprecedented emergency of Covid-19,” Chadha wrote.
Several parts of Delhi faced water shortage on Wednesday after two of the three water treatment plants in the city could not be operated at optimum capacity because of high ammonia levels.
The areas that were worst hit were Vijay Nagar, Timarpur, Khyber Pass, Old Secretariat, Civil Lines, Lahori Gate, Old Sabzi Mandi, Naya Bazaar, Peeli Kothi, Malka Ganj, Motia Khan, Jhandewalan, Baraf Khana, Patparganj, Pusa Road, Rajinder Nagar, Karol Bagh and Giri Nagar
A senior Haryana government official rejected the allegations by Delhi government, saying the state was receiving 20-25% less water received from the Bhakra reservoir and 50% less from the Yamuna river. This is causing shortage in drinking water supply in Haryana, he said.
Chadha, in his letter, said that two water treatment plants in Delhi — Wazirabad and Chandrawal — sourced water from Yamuna. He said that the quantity and quality of water at the Wazirabad barrage depended on the release of raw water by Haryana. “On many occasions, the quality of water available at the Wazirabad barrage is not fit for treatment because of the concentration of pollutants, particularly ammonia, which results in partial or complete shutdown of two water treatment plants. Given that the two plants cumulatively produce about 228 MGD (million gallons per day) of potable water, thid shutdown, when accompanied by a short supply of raw water, adversely affects the availability of drinking water supply to the people of Delhi,” he wrote.