New Delhi: An official told PTI that all the sewage drains opened into the Yamuna will be tapped, and by December, no dirty water will be flowing through it. National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) Director-General G Asok Kumar said that there are 18 drains opening into holy river plans are ready to divert them to treatment plants, PTI reported.
"Now that the sewage treatment plants are in place, we can divert the dirty water flowing into the river to these plants. The treated water which we get from the STPs can then be added to the river so that the flow of the river is also improved. So by December, no dirty water will be coming into the Yamuna river, and its flow will also see improvement," he said.
Kumar said they would try to ensure that the water flowing through the river will be of bathing quality by December.
He said that once the dirty water flow is stopped, a minimum flow of water will set so that the Yamuna will flow uninterruptedly, ensuring its cleanliness.
Only 2 per cent or 22 km of the 1,300 km long river falls in Delhi. But 98 per cent of the river's pollution happens here after untreated or semi treated industrial wastes and sewage are discharged into it.
He further said that NMCG is probing nonpoint sources of pollution in the Yamuna, like those creating froth in the water. "We are also trying to look at the dhobi ghats through which a lot of soap is coming into the water. We are trying to address those nonpoint sources too and see they do not add pollution to the river," he said.
Kumar added that NMCG is launching NGYodha (Namami Gange Yamuna of Delhi area) to focus on cleaning the Yamuna.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) estimates that the national capital produces 3,800 million litres of sewage every day. The Yamuna caters to more than half of the population of Delhi.