India, July 30 -- In one of Delhi's biggest infrastructure pushes to revive the Yamuna, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) on Wednesday approved nearly Rs.4,500 crore worth of sewerage and river rejuvenation projects, including 15 new Decentralised Sewage Treatment Plants (DSTPs), expansion of sewer networks, upgradation of existing treatment plants and other pollution-control measures. The projects are expected to improve sewer connectivity for lakhs of households and directly benefit around 20 lakh residents through the newly approved DSTPs, while taking Delhi's sewage treatment capacity to 1,041 million gallons per day (MGD), surpassing the city's current sewage generation of around 1,000 MGD for the first time.
Announcing the decisions after the 179th Delhi Jal Board meeting, Water Minister and DJB Chairman Parvesh Sahib Singh said the government has adopted an infrastructure-led strategy to restore the Yamuna by ensuring untreated sewage no longer reaches the river. "People often ask when the Yamuna will become clean. The answer lies in building the right infrastructure. Unless every drop of sewage is treated before it reaches our drains and eventually the Yamuna, the river cannot be restored. That is exactly what we are building today," he said. The minister said Delhi had a sewage treatment capacity of 749 MGD when the present government assumed office, leaving a significant treatment gap against the city's sewage generation. Through the rehabilitation and upgradation of existing Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs), the capacity has already increased to 814 MGD. Once all 28 DSTPs become operational, they will add another 227 MGD, taking the total treatment capacity to 1,041 MGD.
"For the first time, Delhi will have the capacity to treat more sewage than it generates. This is a historic milestone in our mission to clean the Yamuna and a major step towards building a sustainable sewerage system for Delhi," Singh said. The Board awarded 15 new DSTPs with a combined treatment capacity of 103.5 MGD at an investment of nearly Rs.2,000 crore. These projects are in addition to the 13 DSTPs approved earlier, taking the total number of decentralised treatment plants under implementation to 28. Explaining the rationale, Singh said the projects have been prioritised in colonies and villages where sewer infrastructure has remained inadequate for years.
"There are still hundreds of colonies and villages where sewer lines either do not exist or remain incomplete. Without proper sewer connectivity, untreated wastewater ultimately flows into drains and then into the Yamuna. These projects address that problem at its source," he said. He added that decentralised sewage treatment plants process wastewater close to where it is generated, reducing dependence on long sewer conveyance systems while improving operational efficiency and enabling quicker treatment. The newly awarded projects are part of a larger sewerage expansion programme that also includes the laying of 989 km of sewer network and providing house sewer connections across 244 colonies and 57 villages at an investment of nearly Rs.1,600 crore. The government said the expanded network will enable lakhs of households to connect directly to the sewerage system, preventing untreated sewage from flowing into drains and eventually the Yamuna.
"A treatment plant alone cannot clean the Yamuna unless sewage reaches it. Therefore, we are simultaneously expanding sewer networks, providing household sewer connections and increasing treatment capacity. Every component of this system is being developed together," the minister said. Singh said all 15 newly awarded DSTPs have been given a 21-month completion timeline. He added that within less than a year, the Delhi Jal Board completed land identification, feasibility studies, preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), appointment of consultants, design approvals, tendering and award of the projects. "Executing 28 decentralised sewage treatment projects in such a short period required detailed planning, constant monitoring and close coordination. Our focus is on delivering results on the ground, not merely making announcements," he said. Alongside the new projects, the Board approved the upgradation of existing STPs to increase their treatment capacity from 66 MGD to 86.8 MGD, while a new 35 MGD STP is being developed at a combined cost of Rs.918 crore. The DJB also approved Rs.274 crore for sludge management at 10 STPs and Rs.65 crore for treating the Delhi Gate Drain. A performance-based framework will link operator payments to treated water quality to improve efficiency.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.