nIn order to make the national Capital self-sufficient in water, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, along with Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, on Friday inaugurated an underground natural water reservoir to conserve rainwater on the Yamuna floodplain.
The project envisages creation of small ponds in the floodplains which will catch water from the overflowing Yamuna during the monsoon season to end water scarcity in the National Capital. It aims at conserving water in the Yamuna floodplains and creating a mega reservoir between Palla and Wazirabad to deal with the water shortage in Delhi, particularly during summer months.
In the event organized by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) on Friday, Kejriwal termed it a 'landmark day', saying that the project will help in making the city self-sufficient in water. "Pilot project begins for natural water storage on Yamuna floodplain by removing top soil layer to create a reservoir to end water scarcity in Delhi. I sincerely thank centre particularly Shekhawat for all his support," Kejriwal tweeted.
The Chief Minister said "It a very big step initiated towards recharging the ground water of Delhi. "Today the world is facing a water crisis and this project will show the way on how to resolve the major problem of depleting ground water," he said.
Elaborating it further, he said that a lot of research has already been done for this project. "Many prestigious institutions, including IIT Delhi have also done a research on this, but it was never implemented due to lack of serious effort. But we have decided to turn it into a reality now," He also announced that the Delhi Government will also make rainwater harvesting a mass movement very soon. The Delhi Cabinet had last month approved the inter-departmental committee's report on the project.
Calling the pilot project can become a model for not only in India but across the world; Shekhawat said "In this project, artificial reservoirs are being created on one meter depth in which floodwater will be collected. This water will gradually recharge and come back to Yamuna through a natural process. The success of this pilot project of Delhi government can be a milestone in water conservation and water security," he added.
The Union Minister further said that the availability of water is a big challenge before the entire world and in India's case it is an even bigger challenge. "There is only one percent drinking water available across the world except Antarctica and other glaciers.
The Union Minister warned that India 's water is the most contaminated in the world and countries which get much less rainfall than India have made themselves water security nations, safeguarding the future of coming generations. The project got all the clearances in a short span of just 45-days. Officials said that the timely approval from the Centre also came in as a shot in the arm and helped in giving ample time to do the groundwork for the project.
