There are certain words that instantly remind you of a particular person. The word ‘Freebies’ reminds us of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal. Arvind Kejriwal is the messiah of freebie politics and has done massive damage to the Union Territory of Delhi. Despite this, the people of Delhi voted for him only to get free water and electricity. However, the Half CM has now begun crying about the scarcity of water in the capital city.
Water crisis in Delhi
Delhi has been dealing with power cuts in the scorching heat. It is now facing another crisis – water shortage. Reportedly, water supply is expected to be hit in North Delhi, North West Delhi, West Delhi and Part of South Delhi including Delhi Cantt. Delhi Jal Board informed about the same. What led to this water shortage? Well, the depletion and drying of the Yamuna River have led to a severe crisis of water in the capital city.
On Saturday, several areas in Delhi recorded 47 degrees Celsius. Moreover, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) warned that Delhi will continue to witness heat waves in the next few days.
The Delhi Jal Board had shared an official statement on Twitter which read, “Due to depletion of pond level at Wazirabad and maximum possible diversion from CLC towards Wazirabad and flow fluctuation in DSB & CLC also excessive floating materials in CLC DSB at Intake Haiderpur, the clear water production has been affected from water treatment plants at Haiderpur Phase-I, Phase-II, Bawana. However, the situation is being reviewed constantly.”
Due to depletion of pond level at Wazirabad and maximum possible diversion from CLC towards Wazirabad and flow fluctuation in DSB & CLC also excessive floating materials in CLC/DSB at Intake Haiderpur.#DJBWaterAlert #DJB4U #DjbOnMissionMode pic.twitter.com/4Us1fRTxWz
— Delhi Jal Board (@DelhiJalBoard) May 21, 2022
It further said, “Delhi Jal Board is endeavouring to rationalize the water supply, however water will be available at low pressure till the situation improves. The affected areas are North Delhi, North West Delhi, West Delhi and Part of South Delhi including Delhi Cannt. and the command area of Deer Park.Therefore, the public is requested to make judicious use of water. They may also contact the Central Control Room at telephone Nos. 1916: 23527679 23634469 for water-related problems i.e demand of tankers etc. Inconvenience to the public is regretted.”
It’s Kejriwal vs Khattar on water crisis
In the view of a water crisis, Arvind Kejriwal-led government in Delhi sent an SOS to Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar to ask for additional water in the Yamuna river amid a scarcity of water.
Delhi Water Minister Satyendar Jain too accused the Haryana government claiming that the state government is depriving the Delhites of their rights by obstructing water supply from the Yamuna river. He said, “The water level in the Wazirabad barrage has been severely depleted due to the Haryana government’s insufficient water supply. This must be understood in light of the fact that a one foot drop in the Yamuna’s water level causes a water scarcity in Delhi, as the Yamuna provides the majority of the city’s drinking water.”
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar soon retaliated saying that Delhi is being provided with its fair share of water.
“As per Supreme Court order, 1,050 cusecs of water is being given and the Upper Yamuna Board has also confirmed from time to time that Delhi is being given their share of water,” the Haryana CM informed.
Taking the Kejriwal led government to the cleaners, the Haryana CM said, “The Delhi government is lying about water. Delhi is being given 1050 cusecs of water for their share.”
Meanwhile, Khattar also informed that it is the Punjab government which is depriving the Haryana people of water. “On the contrary, the AAP government of Punjab is not giving our share of water to Haryana. The chief minister of Delhi should first get the water of Haryana’s share from Punjab,” Khattar said.
Water supply in Delhi
It is pertinent to note that Delhi receives raw water from neighbouring states like Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. In 1994, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by the five basin states of the Yamuna, Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh for sharing their water in upper Yamuna.
However, Yamuna water has always been a contentious issue between Delhi and Haryana.
Delhi receives around 90 per cent of the water supply from the river, Yamuna and Ganga. The remaining 10 per cent is covered by groundwater. Haryana and Uttar Pradesh are the two main states that supply raw water through canals and channels.
Moreover, Delhi is one of the cities which have probably exhausted its groundwater resources. As per the NITI Ayog 2019 report, a total of 21 cities including Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad and Chennai would have probably exhausted their groundwater resources in 2021.
Reports suggest that East Delhi plants receive raw water from the Ganga through pipelines stretching from Muradnagar in Uttar Pradesh. Haryana also provides 610 million gallons of water a day to Delhi through two canals Carrier-Lined Channel (CLC) and Delhi Sub-Branch (DSB) and the Yamuna.
Kejriwal, who is the chairman of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), promised free water to every citizen of Delhi in his election manifesto and campaigns. After his government came to power, the government started delivering free water, but the quality of water deteriorated.
Read more: Kejriwal promised free water to Delhi. He gave contaminated water to them
Since the AAP government came to power, the Delhi Jal Board posted a loss of more than 800 crore rupees. In FY 2015-16 the board posted a loss of 209 crore rupees, 533 crore rupees in FY 17, and 275 crore rupees loss in FY 18.
Read more: Delhi is facing its severest water crisis, CM Kejriwal couldn’t care less
After the Kejriwal government came to power in 2015, free water was announced for 22 lakh water connections which consumed 20,000 litres per month. The Jal Board is mandated to hike the water rates by 10 per cent every year, but, after the Kejriwal government came to power, it has not increased the prices given the populist promises of Kejriwal.
The man who promised free water to Delhiites has dragged them to a state where there is no water. It must be disappointing for the people that the man whom they voted and trusted snatched whatever little they had.