Barely a week after Haryana vehemently cut the supply of water to Delhi, two water treatment plants (WTPs) in Wazirabad and Chandrawal in the Capital were shut down after heavy quantity of ammonia was found in the water released by the State for Delhi’s use was found to be higher than permissible levels.
The plants will become functional only after both the plants are treated by experts and the ammonia content is removed from the potable water. On Tuesday, ammonia and chloride levels rose sharply in the raw water supplied from Haryana to Delhi, as did the hardness. Consequently the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) had to close down the Wazirabad and Chandrawal WTPs. Both these water treatment plants produce 220 million gallon water per day. This means Delhiites will have to face tough time as there will be huge shortage of water for the next few days.
With their closure, several areas in North Delhi, North-West Delhi, parts of West Delhi, Central Delhi, parts of South Delhi, NDMC area and Delhi Cantonment will face disruption in supply. Jal Board officials cautioned residents that tanker supply in these areas may not be available due to non-availability of treated water at filling stations.
“The raw water supply from the river Yamuna has been badly affected due to the release of industrial pollutants coming from the Sonepat and Panipat drains. Today, the ammonia level has touched an all time high of 2.6 mgl against the limit of 0.2 mgl, forcing DJB to completely shut down two of its water treatment plants, catering to the needs of a large population of the city,” said DJB official.
The DJB officials have raised the issue of untreated discharge of industrial waste in the river Yamuna, repeatedly; however, no concrete measures have been taken by the Haryana State to keep a check on the rising level of pollutants in the Yamuna supply to the Wazirabad pond.
In a meeting which was held about two years back at the level of the Chief Ministers’ of Delhi and Haryana, where the Union Minister of Environment & Forest, GOI was also present, it was assured by Haryana that it would take long term measures to manage pollution entering from the Panipat drain into the river Yamuna. But unfortunately, despite repeated persuasion by DJB, nothing has been done.
The DJB now wants the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Central Government to step in. “If Haryana claims it is not polluting the Yamuna, and that there are effluent treatment plants at Panipat, how does this untreated waste find its way into the Panipat canalIJ” asked the official.
Demanding an inspection of Haryana’s claim, the official said: “A body comprising Central Government officials and HSPCB and CPCB representatives should inspect the sites and factories to ascertain whether effluents are being treated at all. We have been bringing this transgression to the notice of the authorities, but no action has been taken so far.”