Angry villagers in North-West Delhi on Tuesday presented Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal with bottles of filthy water at the inauguration of the Bawana treatment plant, raising concerns over the water quality. Mr. Kejriwal, Deputy Chief Minister and Delhi Jal Board chairperson Manish Sisodia and DJB vice-chairperson Kapil Mishra were at the inauguration of the 20-million gallons per day plant when the residents placed the bottles on their table.
“We have been getting this dirty water. The quality is so bad that we can’t even use it,” said a protester.
Mr. Mishra said the protesters were residents of Sohnar village. “They have been getting red-coloured water, which could be because of the iron content. The Chief Minister has assured them that they will be supplied clean water through the Bawana plant,” he said.
Meanwhile, around 6 lakh people are being benefitted from the commissioning of the Bawana plant, which was constructed in 2003 at a cost of Rs.13.91 crore. However, Mr. Mishra said the plant was functioning at 6 MGD capacity currently due to lack of adequate raw water supply. “The plant should reach 10 MGD output in a month and full capacity in two months. A total of 19 villages and 10 colonies will benefit from it,” said Mr. Mishra. Mr. Kejriwal congratulated the DJB for commissioning the plant and said it would bring relief to area residents. Mr. Sisodia added that there was need to conserve water and that the public and the government should work together for rainwater harvesting.
The delay in commissioning the plant was due to a dispute between Delhi and Haryana over sharing water saved by switching from a kacha canal to the carrier-lined channel of the Munak Canal. With a court ordered resolution, water for commissioning the Dwarka and Bawana plants was made available.
The DJB also inaugurated a 6 MGD underground reservoir, which was completed in 2012 at a cost of Rs. 3,143 lakh.
With Tuesday’s inauguration, all nine water treatment plants in Delhi are functioning, though not at full capacity.
Around six lakh people are expected to benefit from the commissioning of the Bawana plant, which was constructed in 2003 at a cost of Rs.13.91 crore
