New Delhi, June 7 (PTI) In an effort to rejuvenate the Yamuna, the Delhi government is working on an action plan to improve the environmental flow of the river by increasing water discharge from various sources, officials said on Saturday.

Treated water from the Coronation Pillar and Yamuna Vihar Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) will be discharged into the Yamuna downstream at Wazirbarad, for which the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) will develop a conveyance system.

The survey work was completed and a detailed project report is being finalised, officials said.

E-flow is the minimum quantity of water flow that a river must have to preserve its ecosystems and meet the bathing standards.

The National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) recommended 23 cumecs (cubic metre per second) ) e-flow in Yamuna at Hathinikund Barrage.

To achieve this, 500 cusec (cubic foot per second) of water must be diverted into the Yamuna from the Upper Ganga Canal after approval from Uttar Pradesh, officials said.

At present, only 10 cumecs are released from the barrage, and a gap of 13 cumecs remains.

A 48-kilometre stretch of the Yamuna courses through the national capital from Palla to Asgarpur, out of which the 22-kilometre segment between Wazirabad and Okhla is the focus area for the river’s rejuvenation work, officials said.

To improve the e-flow in Delhi downstream, 6.23 cumecs will be additionally discharged into the Yamuna, which will partially revive it.

Approval from the UP Irrigation Department was secured, and an amount of Rs 8.7 crore was allocated for this project, expected to be completed by October this year.

According to the plan, 454 MLD (mega litres per day) of treated water from the Coronation Pillar STP will be released into the Yamuna at Wazirabad downstream.

A feasibility study of the work is underway, they said.

Also, 227 MLD treated water from the Yamuna Vihar STP will be discharged at Wazirabad downstream of the river for which a conveyance system is to be developed, they said.

Yamuna rejuvenation is one of the topmost priorities of the BJP government headed by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta in Delhi.

It was one of the key poll promises of the party in the Delhi Assembly polls held in February this year.

Following a recent meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding the cleaning of the Yamuna, the chief minister highlighted her government’s commitment to achieving a cleaner Yamuna.

The Centre and the Delhi government are committed to making Yamuna pollution-free, and they are moving step-by-step towards the goal of a clean river, she said The 22-kilometre stretch of the Yamuna between Wazirabad and Okhla, which accounts for less than 2 per cent of the river’s total length, is responsible for 80 per cent of its pollution load, official reports say. PTI VIT MPL MPL