New Delhi: Delhi govt has initiated the process to replicate Ahmedabad’s Sabarmati riverfront model along Yamuna, with water minister Parvesh Verma saying it will complete the first phase of the project within its current term.Govt has moved a proposal to sign an agreement with Sabarmati Riverfront Development Corporation and is hiring consultants to start work, he said.The project will be divided into two stretches by Wazirabad barrage. The first phase will cover Palla to Wazirabad, while the second will extend from Wazirabad to Kalindi Kunj, near Okhla barrage. The first stretch will be developed first, serving as a model for the rest of the riverfront, he said.The plan includes dedicated zones for yoga, morning walk, cycling and sports, with govt looking to make the riverbanks easily accessible to all.Verma visited Sabarmati riverfront this Aug along with officials from Delhi Jal Board and irrigation & flood control department to study the project.Senior officials said that govt is also working on cleaning Yamuna, which is a bigger challenge. The river flows for about 52 kilometres through Delhi, with the 22-kilometre stretch between Wazirabad and Okhla among its most polluted sections.The problem persists despite years of clean-up efforts. Delhi Pollution Control Committee data had on different occasions shown that faecal contamination increased in the river, especially near Wazirabad and Nizamuddin Bridge.Verma said 28 of Delhi’s 37 sewage treatment plants have been upgraded over the past 18 months. Govt plans to add another 250 million gallons per day of treatment capacity to address the existing shortfall. Yamuna could become visibly cleaner in about two and a half years when the sewage treatment projects are completed, he added.Delhi has been trying to restore and develop Yamuna’s banks for years. In 2019, Delhi Development Authority (DDA) prepared a plan to rejuvenate nearly 1,476 hectares of the river’s floodplains through 10 projects.Development along the river faces environmental restrictions, particularly in its floodplains. DDA informed National Green Tribunal that it had installed 277 boundary markers along the Wazirabad-Okhla stretch, while demarcation work in the remaining areas was to be taken up in another phase.
