Water pollution leads to shortage in north localities

A spike in pollutant levels and ammonia in the Yamuna has affected water treatment operations at the Wazirabad and Chandrawal water treatment plants, hitting water supply to several north Delhi areas, officials said on Sunday.

- Paras Singh

NEW DELHI: Residents in the catchment areas of these plants complained about low water pressure and water contamination on Sunday.

DJB officials said that the situation will only ease after the pollution level comes down. According to DJB, water will be supplied at low pressure till the situation improves. The areas likely to be affected are Majnu Ka Tila, the area around ISBT, CGO complex, IP estate, Delhi gate, Subhash Park, Gulabi Bagh, Timarpur, Punjabi Bagh, Azadpur, Shalimar Bagh, Wazirpur, Lawrence Road, Model Town and Jahangirpuri. Some parts of south Delhi may also face disruption.

A senior Delhi Jal Board (DJB) official said that there is very high receipt of pollutant load in the raw water being received upstream of Wazirabad.

"We have capacity of treating raw water up to 1ppm (parts per million) ammonia levels but the current pollution load at Wazirabad pond is four times higher. On Sunday evening, the ammonia level at Wazirabad was 4ppm. The water supply from the Wazirabad plant is down by almost 50%. At Chandrawal water treatment plant, the water supply is down by 10%," the official added.

"The public is advised to make judicious use of water and water tankers shall be available on demand from the DJB helpline in the central control room 1916," DJB said in a statement.