Amid the conflicting opinions of the team members that Sabarmati river development project cannot be replicated to Yamuna, CR Babu, DU professor emeritus, who was one of the team members, has advised the lieutenant-Governor and the Capital's bureaucrats against replicating the Sabarmati project.
A team of Delhi Government officials that has gone to Gujarat recently to study the State’s Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project to replicate the same to rejuvenate Yamuna in Delhi expressed difficulties in doing so and failed to make a consensus as to what could be done to cleanse the river from its current state. Even two weeks after their visit, the officials are yet to reach a consensus of the report. The most notable people who have visited Gujarat to study Sabarmati project, which gets replenished from Narmada River, feel that the same can’t be done with Yamuna as its has very low stream. The 22-km stretch in Delhi, which has 18 drains flowing into it, needs a different set of solutions.
“The issue is that the water flowing in the Sabarmati is being released through a 10.5-km artificial canal with water diverted from Narmada river canal. But here there is no other source of water which can be released in the Yamuna,” said an official, who has visited Gujarat.
“There could be nothing like it if we could restore Yamuna but then we are yet to reach a consensus on how to replicate the Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project. But then there is no other water source which can used to clean up Yamuna,” said the official.
Delhi Government also recently held a meeting with the Ministry of Shipping to develop stretches of Yamuna in Delhi as inland waterways for navigation. Delhi Government will soon submit a plan for constructing a couple of barrages on the river. At present, there is only one barrage from where water is lifted for treatment for potable use in Delhi.