Yamuna to bank on Ganga water to flush out pollutants

As part of the Centre’s Yamuna rejuvenation strategy, Delhi government agencies are exploring a proposal to divert around 500 cusecs of Ganga water to the Yamuna to improve its flow during the non-monsoon season, multiple officials familiar with the matter said.

- Paras Singh

The plan, which was discussed at a high-level meeting on May 22 chaired by Union home minister Amit Shah, alongside Union urban affairs minister Manohar Lal Khattar, Jal Shakti minister CR Patil, and Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta, proposes the diversion of water from the Upper Ganga Canal in Roorkee to the Eastern Yamuna Canal via the Deoband feeder branch. From there, it will reach the Yamuna at three points in western Uttar Pradesh — Bhaniawala, Baraut, and Jawli near Loni — through re-engineered defunct stormwater drains that once served as Yamuna tributaries.

The additional water will enter the Yamuna upstream of Wazirabad, a 22km stretch through Delhi that contributes to over 76% of the river's pollution, according to the Yamuna Monitoring Committee.