Water is a basic necessity of life. We all can survive without food for someday but we cannot live without water. The national capital Delhi is engulfed in a water crisis amid the scorching heat. On 12th May the water level in the Wazirabad pond water work came down from 674.50 feet to 669.40 feet which results in depleting dangerously due to less flow in the Yamuna.
Many people are troubled by the scarcity of water and are continuously complaining to the Delhi Jal Board. Delhi Jal Board says that the situation is improving now and the situation will be better soon. In some areas, people say that earlier there was water in the taps for 10 minutes but now that too has disappeared from the taps. Along with this, there has also been a decrease in the release of Yamuna water from Haryana.
City requirements of water are around 1,200 MGD of water, while the Delhi Jal Board supplies around 950 MGD. The city government decided to increase the water supply to 998 MGD. As the demand of water in summer will increase so they can supply 1,180 MGD by June 2022.
WTPs together produce around 230 MGD. Out of which 20 MGD from Okhla, 90 MGD from Chandrawal and 120 MGD from Wazirabad. The current level of the Wazirabad pond, which is around 669 ft. The river is drying and water production at Wazirabad, Chandrawal, and Okhla has fallen by around 25%-30%.
Delhi needs around 1,200 MGD of water while the Delhi Jal Board provides around 950 MGD. The AAP government now aims to increase water supply to 998 MGD to meet growing demand this summer and to 1,180 MGD by June 2023.
“Delhi’s water production has been maintained 900 MGD. Water is supplied to about 19.5 million population of Delhi through a water supply network comprising of 14355 km long pipelines and 107 primary Underground Reservoirs (UGRs) to ensure equitable water supply at sufficient pressure,” DJB said in its official notification.
Water crisis in Delhi
Many districts and areas of Delhi like Kamla Nagar, Hindu Rao Hospital, Pahar Ganj, Prem Nagar, Rajendra Nagar, Govindpuri, Baljit Nagar, Sangam Vihar, Ambedkar Nagar, Subhash Park, Delhi Gate, Ramlila Ground, Cantonment, Greater Kailash, Jahangirpuri, Gulabi Bagh, Prahlad Puri, Tughlakabad, Model Town, South Delhi, Civil Lines, Shakti Nagar, Moolchand, Kalkaji, etc.
Haryana supplies 61 million gallons of water per day to Delhi through two canals - Carrier Lined Channel (CLC) and Delhi Sub-Branch (DSB) and the Yamuna. Also, Delhi receives 253 MGD from Uttar Pradesh through the Upper Ganga Canal, and 90 MGD is drawn from Ranney wells and tubewells installed across the capital city.
Delhi government has written a letter to the Haryana Irrigation Department urging it to release excess water in the river so that water supply can be uninterrupted in the capital.
Low level of water in Wazirabad pond and low effluent in CLC, the operational capacity of various water treatment plants (WTPs) including Chandrawal, Wazirabad, Haiderpur, Nangloi and Dwara has reduced.
As per the NITI Ayog 2019 report, Delhi is among the 21 cities of India which have probably exhausted its groundwater resources.
Source of water
Delhi's two main water sources are Yamuna and Ganga, which provide about 90 per cent of the water supply. The remaining 10 per cent is covered by groundwater. Out of these, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are two major states that supply raw water through canals and canals.
Plants in East Delhi obtain raw water from the Ganges through pipelines stretching from Muradnagar in Uttar Pradesh, while Haryana supplies 610 million gallons of water per day to Delhi through two Carrier-Lined Channel (CLC) channels. and the Delhi Sub-Branch (DSB) and the Yamuna.
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