India, July 15 -- It usually offends many that the Delhi stretch of one of India's mightiest and sacred rivers is often likened to an open sewer, but for the wrong reasons. Here, it dramatically narrows due to untrammelled encroachment and reeks of the overwhelming volume of the city's raw sewage - facts that should elicit anger and indignation, not the pride and piety that the Yamuna typically stirs. The latest assessment by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) shows that 22 main drains - many of which were originally stormwater channels - contribute 76% more wastewater than previously estimated to the Yamuna.

Delhi's sewage treatment plants continue to operate below capacity. Many homes, small factories, and businesses are not connected to a sewe...