Pollution of the Yamuna River by domestic sewage leads to ecological disaster

Toxic white foam has been seen floating on parts of the River Yamuna near Kalindi Kunj because of pollution. 

The Yamuna River in Delhi has been covered with a thick layer of white froth, posing health hazards for people, especially as the festive season approaches. 

Chhath Puja, which will be celebrated on November 5 this year, involves devotees taking a dip into the river. However, with the state of the river being extremely polluted, festivities may be hampered. 


The Aam Aadmi Party said that the Delhi government is closely monitoring the situation.

"Officials have already begun sprinkling defoamers to tackle the issue and the government is actively taking steps to manage and resolve the situation," the party said in a statement.

The pungent foam contains high levels of ammonia and phosphates, posing serious health risks, including respiratory and skin problems, according to environmental experts, reported news agency PTI.

Bhim Singh Rawat, associate coordinator of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) told PTI that for the level of foam present, the pollution levels have to be alarming, as the river itself also has a natural cleansing ability.

Experts have urged the government to address the pollution levels in the river and take quick action to prevent a public health crisis as festivals approach.

A thick layer of toxic foam has once again coated parts of a sacred river near New Delhi as the Indian capital battles an acrid and noxious smog that has settled across the city.

The white froth, a mixture of sewage and industrial waste, has formed over sections of the Yamuna River – a tributary of the holy Ganges River – which flows about 855 miles (1,376 kilometers) south from the Himalayas through several states.

The pungent foam contains high levels of ammonia and phosphates, which can cause respiratory and skin problems, according to experts. Its latest arrival has coincided with hazardous levels of pollution that have sickened many of New Delhi’s more than 20 million residents and forced primary schools and some offices to close.

A similar-looking mixture has appeared in a canal in India’s southern Tamil Nadu state, according to the Press Trust of India. Strong gusts of wind carry the froth onto the roads and into the paths of cars and motorcycles.

Delhi-based environmentalist Vimlendu Jha says that the lack of political will, zero urgency in cleaning the Yamuna, and minimal action on the ground were reasons behind the frequent foaming in the river. 

Bhavreen Kandhari, another environmentalist, also felt that toxic foam-covered sections of the river are due to the negligence and absence of real action on the ground: ‘On the Yamuna, scores of farmhouses and industries are discharging pollutants into the river. There are about 92 drains that open directly into Yamuna, out of which 62 are untapped.’

For decades, sections of the Yamuna have been plagued by the dumping of toxic chemicals and untreated sewage. As a result, the river appears dark and sludgy in several parts, while plastic waste lines its banks.

This year, a high-level committee constituted by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) for the rejuvenation of the Yamuna chalked out a six-month action plan till June 2023, with monthly targets. The committee stressed time-bound actions on ‘right parameters’ that include enhancement of sewage-treatment capacity in Delhi and the augmentation of Sewage Treatment Plants, tapping of drains and treatment of sewage in 44 sub-drains, extension of the sewage network in all 1,799 unauthorized colonies in Delhi and surrounding areas, upgrade of 13 Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETP) for treatment, management of industrial effluents and ensuring minimum environmental flow in the Yamuna using inter-state coordination.

Only time will tell whether these measures will be implemented and succeed and whether Yamuna will revive and flow perennially again. For now, one can only hope.

After harsh criticism, the government brought in 15 boats to clean up the poisonous foam in the Delhi area. But it has already dealt another blow to the health of India's residents, who already suffer from a pall of thick smog in the air.

BJP leader and Union minister Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Tuesday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over the pollution of the Yamuna river and said he could not avoid the "sin of disrespecting people's faith".

Photos and videos showing devotees praying in the Yamuna on the occasion of the Chhat Puja festival on Monday, with toxic foam floating on the surface of the river, have sparked a political row between the ruling AAP and the BJP in Delhi.

Responding to the AAP government's claim that polluted water was entering the Yamuna river from other states, Union Minister Jal Shakti said it was a distortion of facts.

Referring to the financial assistance given to the Delhi government under the Namami Gange program to tackle Yamuna pollution, Shekhawat said the assistance is for 13 sewage treatment projects with a capacity of about 1,385 million liters per day, involving an investment of Rs 2,419 crore.

Instead of working towards the completion of these projects, the Delhi government has unfortunately misplaced its priorities, he argued.

According to a study by the Gurgaon Institute of Technology and Management, the Yamuna is one of the most polluted rivers in the world despite being the source of 70% of Delhi's water supply.

Dr Anil Kumar, director of the state's environment department, said plastic enters the state mainly through open drains where people dump their waste. Dinesh Mohania, vice-chairman of Delhi Jal, claimed that the contribution of plastic to the pollution of the river is only 1%. He said they have started covering open drains and diverting them to treatment plants.

According to the CSE, about 80% of Yamuna's pollution is due to untreated sewage. Only 55% of Delhi residents are connected to a proper sewage system.
In the long term, continuous pollution of the river can lead to the loss of biodiversity and even the extinction of some species and can disrupt the ecosystem as a whole.

The Supreme Court brought in experts from the Indian Institutes of Technology of Delhi and Roorkee to develop plans to clean up the polluted Yamuna River and censured the Delhi Jal Council for its "pathetic" work.

Addressing the directors of the two institutes, a high court bench comprising Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice Madan B Lokur said that "it is impossible to clean the Yamuna unless the discharge of sewage is stopped" and asked them to "tell us how to clean the Yamuna".

"We are not here to blame anyone. The only sad thing is that it (the Yamuna cleaning issue) has been pending since 1994 and things are getting worse day by day,” the apex court said. Justice Lokur said the Yamuna could not be cleaned unless "more flow of water" existed. After perusing the writ petition filed by the Delhi Jal Board, the court said, "What DJB has done in the past is deplorable…"
The court set up a committee headed by the environment and forest minister to suggest plans to "control and prevent" pollution and clean up the river. The court had earlier observed that the Yamuna in Delhi was a drain, even after spending Rs 12,000 crore on it. cleaning, his condition worsened. The committee comprises the directors of IITs Delhi and Roorkee, the chief secretary of Haryana, representatives of public institutions in Delhi and the Noida authorities, and a representative of the lieutenant governor of Delhi.