The Delhi BJP unit addressed a press conference on water shortage in the capital. | Photo Credit: ANI
The BJP’s Delhi unit hit out at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government over the ongoing water crisis in the Capital on Thursday, saying the party has been in power for a decade, failing to implement a long-term solution. including the promise of free water.
“They (AAP) promised the people of Delhi that they will give free water, but today, you can’t do that. The government’s corruption and failure to plan and execute has led to this situation,” said East Delhi MP Harsh Malhotra.
Pointing out the “lack of work” being done to alleviate the ongoing crisis, Mr. Malhotra said the Yamuna river that runs through Delhi could be a useful resource if there was no pollution.
“In the last ten years, the Delhi government has not implemented a long-term solution. We have our own river, but it is polluted. There are 18 big channels that flow, so the water is not drinkable,” he said.
The AAP denied the allegations in a statement, saying it had taken several steps to address the ongoing water shortage, including signing an MoU with the Himachal Pradesh government to get an additional 50 MGD (million gallons per day), but Haryana was “not letting” the water. reached Delhi.
The proposal is currently pending with the Upper Yamuna River Board, where Haryana has raised some spurious concerns such as “inadequate” water in Himachal, the statement added.
‘It’s nothing to do’
North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari said the government is avoiding the Assembly session because “they know they are lying”. He added that there are no relief measures to replenish the depleted water stocks. “Rainwater harvesting is an easy and cheap solution, but it has not been tried. In addition, the ground water level is decreasing, but no efforts are being made to resolve the situation,” he said.
Blaming leakages in water pipelines for the water crisis, the BJP leader said that they have sent water tankers to areas facing shortages, but as they are not in the hands of the government, there is only so much they can do. “The BJP can only give the AAP government a solution, but not implement it,” said Mr. Tiwari.
New Delhi MP Bansuri Swaraj said Delhi is in a “tough situation” due to the “apathy” of the AAP government. “All of Delhi is dry, but despite this, AAP is politicizing the issue. For the first time in democratic India, Ministers are engaging in theater instead of dealing with the crisis,” he said, referring to Water Minister Atishi’s decision to go on an indefinite hunger strike until Haryana releases its share of water. in Delhi.
‘Tackling leaks’
However, the Delhi government said it has taken steps to deal with the leakage of water transport from Haryana to Delhi.
“To reduce water leakage, the Delhi Jal Board has spent around ₹ 500 crore to build lined channels, reducing water loss from 30% to 5%. In addition, 3,500 km of old pipes have been replaced in the last eight years, and to reduce illegal tapping and water theft, more than 7,300 km of new pipes have been laid in the last 10 years. About 5,200 km of these new pipes have been laid in illegal colonies, and 2,100 km in rural and urban villages,” the statement said.
The government also said it has installed 3,000 bulk flow meters to monitor water consumption in real time. The Leak Detection Cell has also detected and repaired 2,000 incidents of leakage in the last six months, he said.
Giving an update on the water plant, he said: “The existing water plant in Delhi can meet an additional water load of 100 MGD over and above the current 1,005 MGD water supply. The new 50 MGD water treatment plant at Dwarka is in the final stages of construction and will be operational when the 50 MGD supply additional water from Himachal is connected with Delhi.Another large water treatment plant at Chandrawal is under construction with a capacity of 105 MDG, and will be commissioned in the current financial year.
