Shah unveils Rs 9k cr projects for Yamuna cleaning

Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated projects worth Rs 9,000 crore on Thursday to clean the Yamuna river in Delhi. The key initiatives include a new sewage treatment plant (STP) with a capacity of 124 million gallons per day (MGD) at Okhla, which will be the largest STP in the city. This plant, built jointly by the Centre and the Delhi government, will supersede eight existing STPs that will be upgraded, boosting their combined capacity from 78.2 MGD to 140.8 MGD and serving around 78.5 lakh people.

Shah stated that the completion of all these projects over the next two to two-and-a-half years will ensure that no untreated wastewater from Delhi flows into the Yamuna. The minister emphasized that these projects, amounting to Rs 8,941 crore, form the foundation for river cleaning and include measures for both wastewater treatment and drinking water initiatives.

The government, formed in Delhi shortly after the inauguration, has already achieved more than 40% of its goal within a month, Shah noted. Projects covering 29 new DSTPs and sewage pumping stations in outer Delhi will benefit 36.29 lakh residents living in 358 unauthorised colonies and 113 villages. Additionally, a 1,034 km stretch of new sewer network will be laid as part of the initiative, according to Water Minister Parvesh Verma.