The issue figured today in the Parliament of India. The Minister of State for Environment and Forests (independent charge) Shri Jairam Ramesh in a written reply to a question by Sh. Shree Gopal Vyas and Balavant Alias Bal Apte in Rajya Sabha today accepted that the water quality of the river in and around Delhi is unsafe for human use.

However, he said that considerable success is being achieved in checking the discharge of untreated waste matter into Yamuna.

As per the water quality monitoring undertaken through independent institutions, the water quality in the stretch of the river Yamuna from Tajewala to Palla in Haryana is found to be within the prescribed limits. However, the stretch of the river in the vicinity of Delhi (downstream of Wazirabad barrage to upstream of Okhla barrage) and in parts of Uttar Pradesh does not meet the standards in terms of Bio-chemical Oxygen Demand. The water quality of Yamuna has not shown the desired improvement owing to large gap between the demand and availability of sewage treatment capacity and lack of fresh water in the river.

The first phase of the Yamuna Action Plan (YAP), covering 21 towns of UP, Delhi & Haryana commenced in April, 1993. This phase was completed in 2003 with a total expenditure of Rs. 682 crore, out of which Rs. 596 crore was borne by the Centre and the balance by the States. The second Phase of YAP commenced in December, 2004. Till September, 2009, an expenditure of Rs 226.89 crore has been incurred under this phase on a cost sharing ratio of 85:15 between the Centre and State Governments. The projects taken up under YAP include interception and diversion of raw sewage, setting up of Sewage Treatment Plants, creation of low cost sanitation facilities, setting up of electric/improved wood crematoria etc. Sewage treatment capacity of 753.25 mld has been created so far under the Plan.

Besides YAP, the Government of Delhi has taken up sewerage and sewage treatment works under other schemes to fully address the pollution load being discharged into Yamuna. The Delhi Jal Board has prepared schemes for laying of interceptor sewers along three major drains namely Najafgarh, Shahdara and Supplementary, construction of sewage treatment plants, interception of drains and rehabilitation of trunk sewers, laying of sewerage system in unsewered colonies and rural areas and desilting of peripheral and internal sewers. #