Improper sewage treatment causing Yamuna’s pollution, says Opposition leader

The Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Vijender Gupta, has criticised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for its failure to address the pollution of the Yamuna River, attributing the crisis to insufficient sewage treatment facilities. Gupta’s remarks followed an inspection of several sewage outfalls across the city, where he observed untreated sewage flowing directly into the river.

“The lack of adequate sewage treatment plants (STPs) is the main cause of the Yamuna’s pollution,” Gupta said.

“The government has only failed to install enough STPs. Also, the existing ones are either underutilised or not functioning at all.”

During his visit to several areas, including Gandhinagar, Shastri Park, ITO Crossing and Chilla, Gupta highlighted the alarming situation where untreated sewage was discharged into the Yamuna. “In Chilla, for instance, there is a 9 MLD capacity STP, yet a staggering 101 MLD of sewage is flowing directly into the river,” he said.

At the ITO Crossing sewage outfall, Gupta noted a similar discrepancy. “There is an STP that can treat only 10 MLD of the 50 MLD sewage entering the Yamuna, leaving 40 MLD untreated,” he explained, emphasising that even sewage from New Delhi, the constituency of former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, contributed to the pollution through

this outfall.

Gupta expressed his concern over the overflow of such outfalls during the monsoon season, which exacerbated waterlogging issues. “When it rains, these outfalls overflow, causing significant flooding on our roads,” he said.

He referenced a report from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) released in August, which revealed that many STPs did not meet the necessary standards for treating sewage effectively.

“The DPCC has ordered an investigation into the inefficiencies of these plants as they are failing to reduce the pollution levels in the Yamuna,” LoP Gupta added.