Angad writes*
A thick layer of toxic foam covers a river which is the major source of water to a city of 33 million (Source). This is the reality of Delhi’s dying holy river, the Yamuna. It is estimated that 880 million litres of mostly untreated sewage water is dumped into the river per day. Largely due to this, the Yamuna contains a concentration of 1.1 billion faecal coliform bacteria per 100 millilitres of water. To put this in perspective, the standard for bathing is 500 coliform bacteria per 100 millilitres (Source).
Only a short section of the Yamuna River flows through Delhi, the majority is located in neighbouring states such as Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. The limited surface water in Delhi means it relies on external water sources. This has led to the establishment of various agreements with its neighbours, and as a result, many canals bring water from parts of the Yamuna from neighbouring states into the capital. The most important — the Munak Canal — brings a majority of the water from the Yamuna, but the canal’s poor condition contributes to water shortages (Source). In addition, disputes between governments at the state level lead to water supply issues, in a tussle of jurisdiction and blame (Source).
The river brings 1.7 billion litres a day of toxic water into the city, which contributes to cholera and diarrhoea (Source). A study in the city found that 28% of households experienced water-borne illness (Source).
Dehli’s population has doubled in the past 24 years, putting supply under greater strain (Source). The city faced a daily water deficit of 533 million litres in 2020 (Source). While this is partly due to disrupted supply during Covid-19, it still burdens the population. The government’s response — giving 20,000 litres of free water to 62.5% of households — has further strained supply and the finances of the water operator, Delhi Jal Board (Source).
The older source of water – groundwater – also seems to be running out (Source). As more and more solutions get used up, the burden on the consumers only increases. The city of Delhi is not only running out of time, it is running out of water.
Bottom Line: Delhi’s water supply is dwindling as rivers are polluted, infrastructure is a mess and the politics is truly Indian. There is an urgent need for a sustainable solution to this crisis.
* Please help my Water Scarcity students by commenting on unclear analysis, alternative perspectives, better data sources, or maybe just saying something nice 🙂
Hey Angad,
Thank you for your blog post, very interesting and scary to see the situation of water in Delhi. Based on your description the water quality looks like a massive public health problem, is the Indian government, local authorities in Delhi or locals doing anything about this situation to solve it?