Water woes to continue, Supreme Court to hear matter today

NEW DELHI:  The supply of drinking water will remain affected in parts of Delhi for the next three days as a result of Haryana releasing less raw water into the Yamuna, the Delhi Jal Board said on Wednesday.  
The DJB also moved the Supreme Court seeking an urgent hearing into the acute shortage of water supply from Haryana and Punjab.

It submitted that if the water supply situation does not improve, it may have to restrict the supply of water to hospitals in the national capital, which are at present overwhelmed by massive numbers of Covid-19 cases.  The bench headed by the Chief Justice of India N V Ramana decided to hear the matter on Thursday. 

According to a DJB statement, the supply from Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants has been “adversely” hit due to the reduction in release of raw water and depletion of water level at Wazirabad pond. Water supply in parts of Central Delhi, North Delhi, South Delhi, West Delhi and cantonment areas will remain affected in “the morning and the evening” for the next three days. 

The situation is likely to persist till the pond level improves to normal, the utility said. At present, the pond level at Wazirabad pond is 667.2 feet against the normal of 674.5 feet. DJB vice chairman Raghav Chadha had on Saturday said the depleting water levels in the Yamuna is leading to a shortage of drinking water in several parts of Delhi and may also affect hospitals in the city in the coming days. He had urged Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar to release more raw water into the Yamuna.