New Delhi, May 25 -- Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Monday inspected the Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs) in Okhla and reviewed ongoing measures aimed at reducing industrial pollution flowing into the Yamuna River. The inspection comes as the Rekha Gupta government intensifies efforts to rejuvenate the Yamuna through large-scale sewage and industrial waste management reforms.

Accompanied by senior officials, Sirsa assessed the operational efficiency of the CETPs, including Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) levels, treatment flow capacities and overall performance of the facilities. Officials informed that the Okhla CETPs currently have a combined treatment capacity of more than 24 million litres per day (MLD).

Addressing officials during the inspection, Sirsa said the government is focusing on decentralising Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and CETPs, while also upgrading outdated infrastructure to ensure that only treated water enters the Yamuna. "We are actively working on decentralising STPs and CETPs wherever feasible, constructing new facilities where required, and upgrading existing infrastructure wherever necessary. A massive and comprehensive effort is underway to ensure clean water flows into the Yamuna," he said. The minister also targeted previous governments over delays in modernising pollution-control infrastructure. "Over the past 25 years, previous governments made numerous promises regarding the upgradation of CETPs, yet no substantive work was ever executed on the ground," Sirsa said.

He added, "Under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, our government is placing its entire focus on upgrading these systems, ensuring improved monitoring, and operating them effectively, thereby guaranteeing that the water discharged into the Yamuna through these CETPs is thoroughly treated and clean."

Sirsa said the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) is conducting a detailed survey to recommend advanced technologies for CETP modernisation. Calling industrial waste a major source of Yamuna pollution, Sirsa said outdated treatment technologies require urgent replacement. The Delhi government has sanctioned over Rs 1,000 crore for Yamuna rejuvenation projects, including new STPs, sewer rehabilitation and rainwater harvesting initiatives.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.