Delhi govt to set up ammonia removal plant to treat polluted Yamuna water coming from Haryana

New Delhi [India], March 24 : The Delhi government on Friday decided to set up an ammonia removal plant to treat polluted Yamuna water coming from Haryana.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by CM Arvind Kejriwal, who gave instructions to set up the plant within six months.
Water Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, Chief Secretary, DJB CEO and senior officers of the concerned department were also present in the meeting.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal recently presided over a high-level meeting with the Delhi Jal Board to discuss a range of pressing issues concerning the national capital's water supply. During the meeting, the Chief Minister highlighted the need to provide clean drinking water to all Delhiites, increase water production, and curb the wastage of water.
"One of the main concerns raised by the Chief Minister was the high level of ammonia in the water that is sourced from Haryana and flows through the Yamuna river into Delhi. The Chief Minister expressed his worry about the excessive presence of ammonia in the water, which has made it extremely challenging for Delhi's water treatment plants to clean the water effectively," the Delhi government said in a press note.
As a result, the production of water has been adversely affected. This issue of ammonia in the water was raised in a previous meeting as well, where the Chief Minister had directed the Delhi Jal Board to find a viable solution to the problem. During the latest meeting, the Chief Minister discussed potential solutions with the DJB officials and stressed the importance of resolving the issue urgently.
Delhi Jal Board officials apprised the Chief Minister that the department has completed the technical feasibility work of the project. Under this, work will be done in two ways. Firstly, efforts are being made to reduce the ammonia present in Yamuna water as much as possible by treating it in the water treatment plant. The second is that technology will also be used by the Delhi Jal Board for in-situ treatment of ammonia. A technical report is being prepared for this.
It was informed in the review meeting that water from Drain No. 2 and Drain 8 of Haryana is coming into the Yamuna. This water is very polluted. There is a huge amount of ammonia present in the water, due to which there is a problem in running the water treatment plant. A pond has been built near the Wazirabad water treatment plant to carry Yamuna water to the water treatment plant.
Delhi Jal Board is trying to set up an in-situ treatment plant near the pond itself. DJB has started work on this. It is our endeavour to reduce the pollution level of ammonia present in the water by installing an in-situ treatment plant near the pond. Through the in-situ treatment plant, the amount of ammonia will be reduced in the water to such an extent that when the treated water is sent from there to the water treatment plant, that water can be completely treated there and become potable. Delhi Jal Board aims to get rid of this problem within 6 months.
As a matter of fact, the water that Delhi gets from Haryana through the Yamuna is treated in the Wazirabad and Chandrawal water treatment plants of the city. Officials said that since December 11, Delhi is getting almost zero river water from Haryana. The water that is visible in the Yamuna near the Wazirabad Water Treatment Plant is not actually of the Yamuna, but the industrial waste from Panipat and Sonipat, which is coming into the Yamuna through their drains.
The amount of pollutant elements in this water is so high that it is very difficult to cure it with a water treatment plant. Officials said that several letters have also been written by the Delhi Jal Board to the Haryana government on the issue of polluted water coming into the Yamuna. But the Haryana government has not taken any cognizance of those letters.
After the Haryana government's non-cooperation on the issue, the Delhi government has decided to reduce the ammonia and other pollutants present in the Yamuna water at its own plants. On the instructions of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, it was decided to set up an in-situ plant to reduce the level of ammonia in Yamuna water due to industrial waste from Haryana. After this, the treated water will be taken to the water treatment plant to be purified and then delivered to people's homes.
During the review meeting, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the Delhi government is fully committed to providing ample and clean water to the people of Delhi. "Soon we will use best-in-class technology to clean ammonia produced in water from industrial waste coming from Sonipat and Panipat in Haryana so that the production capacity of water can be increased," he said.
"In the last one and a half months, the Chief Minister has been holding regular review meetings with the concerned departments including the Delhi Jal Board and is personally monitoring each and every point of the project. In this one and a half months, the Chief Minister held this third high-level meeting today," the statement added.
Earlier on March 15, the CM held a review meeting and directed the officials to set up an ammonia removal plant to eliminate the ammonia present in the water. The Chief Minister had asked the Delhi Jal Board to form a plan within a week.
Earlier, on February 17 also, CM Kejriwal held a high-level review meeting on the project.