The BJP’s Delhi unit lashed out at the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government over the ongoing water crisis in the Capital on Thursday, stating that for the ten years the party has been in power, it has failed to implement any long-term solutions, including its promise of free water.
“They [AAP] promised the people of Delhi that they will give them free water, but today, you are unable to fulfil even that. The government’s corruption and its failure to plan and execute has led to these circumstances,” said East Delhi MP Harsh Malhotra.
Pointing out the “lack of work” being done to mitigate the ongoing crisis, Mr. Malhotra said the Yamuna river flowing through Delhi could be a useful resource had it not been polluted.
“In the last ten years, the Delhi government has not implemented any long-term solutions. We have our own river, but it is polluted. It has 18 big drains flowing into it, making its water undrinkable,” he said.
AAP countered the allegations in a statement, saying they have undertaken several measures to counter the ongoing water shortage, including signing an MoU with the Himachal Pradesh government to procure an additional 50 MGD (million gallons per day) of water, but the Haryana is “not letting” the water reach Delhi.
The proposal is currently pending with the Upper Yamuna River Board, where Haryana has raised several false concerns such as the “insufficient” water in Himachal, the statement added.
‘No work done’
North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari said the government was avoiding calling an Assembly session because “they know they are lying”. He added that no relief measures had been taken to add to the depleted stock of water. “Rainwater harvesting is an easy and cheap solution, but they have not tried it. Moreover, the groundwater level is being depleted, but no work is being done to remedy the situation,” he said.
Blaming the leakages in the water pipelines for the water crisis, BJP leaders said they had been sending water tankers to areas facing a dire shortage, but since they are not in government, there is only so much they can do. “BJP can only give the AAP government solutions, but not implement them for it,” Mr. Tiwari said.
New Delhi MP Bansuri Swaraj said Delhi was in a “dire state” due to the “apathy” of the AAP government. “All of Delhi is parched, but despite that, AAP is politicising the issue. For the first time in democratic India, Ministers are involving themselves in theatrics instead of addressing the crisis,” she said, referring to Water Minister Atishi’s decision to go on an indefinite hunger strike until Haryana releases Delhi’s share of water.
‘Addressing leakages’
However, the Delhi government said it had taken measures to address leakages in the transportation of water from Haryana to Delhi.
“To reduce the leakage of water, the Delhi Jal Board has spent about ₹500 crore to construct a carried lined channel, reducing water loss from 30% to 5%. Additionally, 3,500 km of old pipelines have been replaced in the last eight years, and to reduce illegal tapping and water theft, over 7,300 km of new pipelines have been laid in the last 10 years. Approximately 5,200 km of these new pipelines have been laid in unauthorised colonies, and 2,100 km in rural areas and urban villages,” the statement said.
The government also said it had installed 3,000 bulk flow meters to monitor water consumption in real time. The Leak Detection Cell has also detected and fixed 2,000 instances of leakage in the last six months, it said.
Providing an update on water plants, it said: “Existing water plants in Delhi can cater to an additional water load of 100 MGD over and above the current 1,005 MGD water supply. A new water treatment plant of 50 MGD in Dwarka is in its final stages of construction and can be used when 50 MGD additional water supply from Himachal connects with Delhi. Another massive water treatment plant at Chandrawal is under construction with a capacity of 105 MDG, and will be started in the current financial year.”
