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Yamuna
Since ancient times, the Doab region, where the Ganga and the Yamuna flow, has been considered one of the most fertile areas in the subcontinent. Nearly 90% of the water is taken away for irrigation; in fact, some areas in Haryana and Punjab are said to be over-irrigated. But today this majestic river is polluted with domestic waste, silt, and industrial waste. The 22-km stretch between Wazirabad and Okhla barrage in Delhi is only 2% of its catchment area, but it contributes about 80% of the river’s total pollution load. There are 16 major drains along the stretch that discharge treated and untreated waste water from industries and sewage of Delhi and Haryana. The Hindon Canal also discharges waste from Uttar Pradesh in this stretch. About 2000 million litres of sewage is pumped into the river from Delhi every day, and its water is now unfit to support any life. Among the many casualties are birds and fish. There was a time when bird watchers had identified as many as 30 species of birds in the Yamuna, many of them exotic like the red-crested pochard and the godwit. The CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) monitors the water quality of the Yamuna in Delhi, and it is graded in the severely polluted category, fit only for recreation, aesthetics, and industrial cooling. According to the CPCB, 70% of the pollution in rivers is from untreated sewage. The remaining 30% is from industrial source, agricultural run-off, garbage, etc. Steps being taken to clean the river The forest department of the Delhi government has launched a ‘greening’ drive under which 60 000 saplings are to be planted along the banks of the Yamuna. The department has already planted 20 000 saplings. The plantation will act as a carbon sink for the city. Environmentalists agree that a forest on the banks of the river will not only have a positive impact on the river but will also improve the air quality of the entire city. The Public Health Department has launched a ‘Yamuna purification drive’. The programme covers 15 cities, including Gurgaon, Faridabad, Yamuna Nagar, Karnal, Panipat, and Sonepat. The first step taken was to control the discharge of raw sewage into the river. Eleven treatment plants are being installed along the 83-km-long sewer line. A treatment plant that can treat 30 million litres a day has been installed in Gurgaon. The plant will help reduce the level of pollution from 200 mg a litre to 30 mg a litre, before it enters the Yamuna. A 5.8-km-long sewer line has been laid in the city to collect the polluted water at the treatment plant. Alarmed at the rate at which the Yamuna was deteriorating, the Supreme Court banned industries in Delhi and Haryana from discharging effluents into the river and all drains leading to the river. In spite of all these efforts, it will be quite some time before we see it again in its former glory.
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Rising from the Yamunotri glacier in the Tehri
Garhwal District in the Himalayas, the Yamuna flows for about 1380 km almost parallel to
the Ganga till they meet at Allahabad. It flows down the hills through the Doon Valley and
after about 150 km cuts through the Shivalik hills and reaches the plains at Faizabad. The
catchment of the river system covers parts of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana,
Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh, and the entire state of Delhi. It flows through a number of
important towns: Delhi, Mathura, Brindaban, and Agra to name some. The total area is 345
850 square km. 