Introduction

Yamuna river is one of the important all-weather rivers of

India originating from Himalayas and is the largest
tributary of Ganga. In India rivers are seen with great
respect and draw ethical values. Regular fares and
community baths are organised on important occasions
on the riverbanks. The river Yamuna covers 345,850 sq
km of area while traversing from Himalayas to the plains
of Uttar Pradesh at Allahabad and there it loses its
identity. It serves as lifeline to the people while flowing
through its path. It provides drinking water, irrigation to a
vast area and helps in generating electric power.

The Impact of Yamuna and other North Indian rivers that

the entire region is regarded as most fertile land in the
Indian subcontinent. The total area it covers before
merging to majestic Ganga is 345,850 square km. The
river covers as many as seven states and it flows
almost entirely through Delhi, where it is also
exploited the most.

However rapid industrialization, deforestation and

urbanization led to large discharge of industrial waste
and sewage system to this, otherwise clean river. This
has resulted in condition when water has become unfit for
drinking. It is not safe for even animals, birds, fishes etc.
The level of total coliform is twice the permissible
limit at the time when Yamuna enters Delhi,
becomes 25 times till it leaves Delhi. This all
happens in a short span of traversing 21 km of so
called ‘Delhi segment’.

Pollution is not the only problem plaguing the Yamuna.

Upstream of Wazirabad, on the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh
border — where till now the river had somehow managed
to retain its free-flowing character before literally turning
into a drain in the city — the sand mining mafia is
clandestinely working to change the course of the river.
Each day, hundreds of truckloads of sand are being
carried out by the miners, who police say are residents of
nearby villages. Each truckload is sold for about Rs 800
on the outskirts of Delhi, basically for construction
purposes.

With the awareness created recently, steps are being

taken to plant trees along the catchment area to prevent
flow of loose soil to river. Initiatives have also been taken
to control flow of untreated industrial waste and raw
sewage to the river.
River Yamuna in Delhi
The total length of the Yamuna from its origin in the
Yamunotri Glacier in the Himalayan ranges of Uttaranchal
to its confluence with the river Ganga at Allahabad in
Uttar Pradesh is 1376 kms of which 22 kms pass through
the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi. It enters
Delhi at Palla near Wazirabad Barrage and leaves Delhi at
the Okhla Barrage.

The stretch between Wazirabad and Okhla barrage in

Delhi is only 2% of its catchment area, but it contributes
about 80% of the river’s total pollution load. More than 57
million people depend on the Yamuna River for drinking
water, but at least 720 mld (190 mgd) of wastewater
entering the river is untreated, according to the National
River Conservation Directorate (NRCD; New Delhi), the
federal agency responsible for cleanup efforts in India.
Organic pollutants and pathogens in wastewater
make up approximately 75% to 80% of the river's
pollution load, while most other pollution comes from
industrial discharges.

About 2000 million litres of sewage is pumped into

the river from Delhi every day, and its water is now
unfit to support any life. Among the first causalities is
aquatic flora and fauna, which support many birds and
mammals, which are involuntary sufferers. Many exotic
bird and fish species are thus either become locally
extinct or are on the brink of extinction.

There are 16 major drains along the stretch that

discharge treated and untreated wastewater from
industries and sewage of Delhi and Haryana. The Hindon
Canal also discharges waste from Uttar Pradesh in this
stretch. The 22 km between the Wazirabad and Okhla
barrages is called Delhi segment, while the 490 km
stretch between Okhla barrage and the confluence with
the Chambal River is known as the eutrophicated
segment because of the quality of its water.

Figure-1: River Yamuna at Wazirabad Barrage (up

stream)
 Parameters to Judge the Quality of
Water
Water quality of a river is assessed and categorised with
reference to its use, viz:
(a) raw water fit for drinking purposes,
(b) raw water fit for bathing purposes, and
(c) raw water fit for agricultural use.

The categorisation of water for its different uses is based

primarily on parameters of Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Bio-
Chemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Coli form
(TC).The water quality of river Yamuna at the point of its
entry into Delhi is adequate to sustain aquatic life and
conforms to water quality of bathing standards.

The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests released a

white paper in December 1997 along with a broad action
plan on “Pollution in Delhi” which aimed inter alia at
achieving water quality of “bathing standards” in
Yamuna. The parameters prescribed to achieve this
standard were as follows:

Parameter of water quality for bathing standard

Parameters Prescribed
Standard
Dissolved Oxygen Not less than 5 mg per litre
Bio Chemical Demand(BOD) Not more than 3mg per
litre
Total Coli form (TC) Not more than 500 per 100
ml
 DESIGNATED BEST USE CLASSIFICATION OF INLAND
SURFACE WATER
CLAS DESIGNATED BEST USE CRITERIA
S
A Drinking water source pH : 6.5 to 8.5
(without conventional Dissolved Oxygen: 6mg/l or
treatment but after more
disinfection) Biochemical Oxygen
Demand: 2mg/l or more
Total Coliform: 50 MPN/100
ml
B Outdoor bathing pH: 6.5 to 8.5
(Organised) Dissolved Oxygen: 5mg/l or
more
Biochemical Oxygen
Demand: 3mg/l or more
Total Coliform: 500 MPN/100
ml
C Drinking water source with pH: 6.5 to 8.5
conventional treatment Dissolved Oxygen: 4mg/l or
followed by disinfection more
Biochemical Oxygen
Demand:3mg/l or more
Total
Coliform:5000MPN/100ml
D Propagation of wild life and pH: 6.5 to 8.5
fisheries Dissolved Oxygen: 4mg/l or
more
Free Ammonia:12mg/l
E Irrigation, Industrial Cooling pH:6.0 to 8.5
and Controlled Waste Electrical Conductivity: 2250
Disposal µ mhos/cm
Sodium Absorption Ratio: 26
Boron: 2 mg/l

Pollution Levels in Yamuna Water (Delhi)

Facts and Analysis based on Samples of Yamuna
Water in Delhi (Palla and Okhla Barrage)

The water quality of Yamuna instead of improving

deteriorated over the period 1999-04 despite expenditure
of Rs. 871.67 crore since 1994 (Rs. 284.98 crore until
1998-99 and Rs. 586.69 crore during 1999-2004-Rs.
439.60 by DJB and Rs. 147.09 crore by DSIDC). The BOD
and DO parameters indicated a sharp deterioration in the
position at the point of the river leaving Delhi as is
depicted in Figures 17 and 18. While BOD at Palla when
the river enters Delhi was within the norms, the load of
untreated sewage of Delhi polluted the river to the extent
that bio-chemical oxygen demand reached 13 times in
excess of the norm at Okhla. The presence of
dissolved oxygen deteriorated from an acceptable one
and a half times above the stipulated minimum norm at
Palla to almost nil at Okhla. Coli form count also
deteriorated exponentially from about 217 times at Palla
to about 1.39 lakh times above the stipulated norm at
Okhla.

BOD Trends Year wise at Palla and Okhla in

River Yamuna (Delhi Stretch)
 DO Trends Year wise at Palla and Okhla
in River Yamuna (Delhi Stretch)

•Dissolved Oxygen (DO) which is the most important

parameter for
sustaining a healthy riverine eco-system was not present
in the Delhi stretch of the river during any part of the
year
• Free ammonia which is toxic to fish and micro-
organisms was present far above the acceptable levels; in
the range of 1.47 mg/l to 6.73 mg/l as against the
acceptable level of 0.02 mg/l;
• There was concentration of heavy metals like copper,
lead, nickel, zinc and mercury far in excess of the limits
prescribed by the Environment Pollution Act. Zinc
particularly was present in very high concentrations in
the river.
• While the water at Palla conforms to the bathing
standards in terms of DO and BOD, by the time Yamuna
leaves Delhi at Okhla, the water deteriorates to far below
the `bathing standards` and is, in fact,unfit for any use.
• The capacity of the soil to retain oxygen required for
biological
decomposition of partially decomposed or un-
decomposed organic
matter contained in sewage is reduced hindering
decomposition of
organic matter resulting in “sickness of soil.”
• Sewage is a potential carrier of various pathogenic
fungi, bacteria and parasites which pose serious
community health hazards like cholera, typhoid, jaundice,
etc. The health hazards from water contaminated with
sewage arise from both consumption of sewage grown
plant products without cooking or processing as well as
from direct contact with sewage. According to a study
conducted by the Environmental Sciences Division of the
Indian Agriculture and Research Institute New Delhi in
2002, vegetables grown in areas like Yamuna Pushta,
Okhla, Najafgarh, Alipur and Ballabgarh were found to
have a significantly higher level of contamination of zinc,
lead and
cadmium.
 Trend of Total Coli Form
Locatio Bathing 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003
n Standards
Palla Not more 950.00 8967.00 5199.00 7500.00 108666.666
than
500/100
ml
Okhla Not more 572500.0 323312. 257667. 9233333. 69333333.0
Barrag than 0 00 00 00 0
e 500/100
ml

WATER QUALITY DATA FOR RIVER YAMUNA

(Summer Average i.e. March-June)

S.No. Station/Location -----1996------- -------2009--------

DO BOD DO BOD
(mg/l) (mg/l) (mg/l) (mg/l)

A. HARYANA
1 Tajewala 11.70 1.20 9.22 1.25
2 Kalanaur 10.40 1.05 9.10 2.33
3 Sonepat 9.75 3.00 7.60 7.00
4 Palla 13.95 6.00 7.10 2.50
B DELHI
5 Nizamudin 0.30 25.00 0.0 23.00
C. UTTAR PARDESH
6 Agra Canal 0.35 26.50 0.00 14.75
7 Majhawali 0.50 22.00 2.75 16.75
8 Mathura 8.10 4.00 5.28 8.50
9 Mathura D/S 8.50 2.50 6.30 8.75
10 Agra U/S 10.65 4.50 7.67 9.25
11 Agra D/S 1.65 9.00 4.67 16.25
12 Batteshwar 13.90 11.00 8.95 13.75
13 Etawah 11.16 7.00 10.88 11.25
14 UDI 9.71 2.00 9.00 1.00
15 Auraiya Juhika 8.14 5.00 11.05 4.75
Till 31/12/09 : YAP YAP-II Total
18064.08 46935.45 64999.53
Sanctioned Cost:
Lakhs
No of Schemes
12 11 23
Sanctioned:
No of Schemes
12 0 12
Completed:
17714.54 12183.72 29898.26L
Funds Released by GOI:
akhs
Expenditure (including 16069.53 11094.97 27164.50L
State Govt. Share): akhs

NRCP States
In the past the river used to be the main source of life for
drinking water, communication and irrigation. Thus serving as
the lifeline for the human kind. The pollutants were limited to
storm water drains. But with the post world war II in general and
post independence in particular, India witnessed massive
deforestation leading to soil erosion and related problems.
Simultaneously industrialization and emphasis of modern living
gained momentum. All the major industries are on the bank of
one or the other river. Yamuna outnumbers any other river in the
number of industries on its banks. This is because it passes
through many major (post independence) industrial cities. But
real problem of Yamuna pollution starts when it passes
through state of Delhi. Research shows that before it
passes through Delhi, the water quality is very much
under control (see Fig.1).

The Yamuna river passing through 22 km in Delhi was once

described as the lifeline of the city, but today it has become one
of the dirtiest rivers in the country. The reason:
* Delhi generates about 3,267 million litres per day (mld) of
sewage while the
city's installed waste water treatment capacity is only 2,330 mld.
More than 937
mld of waste is not treated. Out of Delhi's 2,330 mld treatment
capacity, 37 per
cent is under-utilised and 1,270 mld of sewage is untreated and
allowed to enter
the river everyday.
* The Yamuna’s 22-km stretch in Delhi is barely 2 per cent of the
length of the river, but contributes over 70 per cent of the
pollution load.
* Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) load has increased by 2.5
times between 1980 and 2005 - from 117 tonnes per day (TPD)
in 1980 to 276 TPD in 2005.
* The faecal coliform count, which indicates the presence of
disease causing micro- organisms(pathogens), is nearly 25,000
times more than the limit prescribed for bathing.
* The Capital has 16 drains discharging treated and untreated
wastewater/sewage into Yamuna.
* The Najafgarh drain contributes to 60 per cent of the total
wastewater and 45 per cent of the total BOD load being
discharged from Delhi into the Yamuna. The municipal
wastewater has increased from 960 MLD in 1977 to 1,900 MLD in
1997.
* The capacity for treatment -increased from 450 MLD in 1977 to
1,270 MLD in 1997.
* A Central Pollution Control Board study on river water quality at
the upstream of Wazirabad shows dissolved oxygen (DO) level at
7.5 mg/l and BOD level at 2.3 mg/l.
* At downstream Okhla, the DO level declined to 1.3 mg/l with
the BOD at 16 mg/l, indicating considerable deterioration in
water quality due to discharge of sewage and industrial
effluents.
* The coliform count at Wazirabad is 8,506/100 ml whereas at
Okhla, it increases to 3,29,312/100 ml, as against the prescribed
standard of 500/100 ml.
Sources: White Paper by the Ministry of Environment and Forests,
Centre for Science and Environment

Average value of typical physico-chemical parameters in

three locations in Delhi along the Yamuna is depicted in
Fig.1. According to Fig.1(b) the value of total coliform
upstream of Delhi is twice the standard value that means
the pollution level is already twice before Yamuna enters
Delhi. After it passes through Delhi, the pollution level
goes 25 times the maximum allowable!
As a result to the growing water pollution, mineral water
market is growing with a tremendous pace. Earlier it used
to be the luxury only suitable for rich, now it has become
popular in lower middle class also. There is a great scope
of this industry in India with a current turnover of 300
crore and a staggering growth rate of 50% per annum.
But in India as the quality consciousness is always
lacking, there are increasing number of reports of harmful
liquids being sold on the name of mineral water.

Reasons for Degradation of Yamuna

Water
The entire Yamuna River right from its origin to
confluence with the Ganga & its tributaries are subject to
human activities, which directly or indirectly affect the
water quality. The pollution potential in the catchment
area depends on various human activities and is mainly
categorized into two groups:

1. Point Sources

Domestic Pollution
Sewage is discharged into the river without any
treatment from the cities located along the banks of river
and its tributaries. This affects aquatic life and depletes
oxygen level resulting into bad odours and turbidity. The
river water does not remain suitable due to pollution, for
uses like drinking, outdoor bathing, propagation of
aquatic life, irrigation and industrial purposes.
Industrial Pollution
Industrial pollution adissolved oxygen, temperature & pH
etc. Some industrial effluents cause toxicity. Large and
medium industrial units - 22 in Haryana, 42 in Delhi and
17 in Uttar Pradesh have been identified as directly
discharging and polluting the river Yamuna under the
Action Plan area. These industries include paper, sugar,
chemical, leather, distillery and pharmaceuticals etc.
These industries are contemplated to adopt adequate
pollution control measures under the existing
environment laws to ensure that treated effluent
confirming the prescribed standards should only be
discharged into the river.

2.Non Point Sources

Though the point sources like industrial waste and

sewage are the first order contamination sources in our
rivers, the non-point sources are also major contributor to
the Yamuna pollution. Non-point source pollution means
water pollution other than that caused by a discharge
pipe from a factory or municipal sewage treatment plant.
Even though animals also contribute to non-point
pollution, most of non-point pollution is due to human
activities. Construction related erosion, sedimentation,
agricultural storm water runoff, outdated urban septic
systems, fertilizers and pesticides are some of the
resultant contaminants in Yamuna due to non-point
sources. Levels of such contaminants in both surface and
ground water are disturbing. Once the contaminants
enter the water source, there is a difficult and expensive
procedure to remove them.
Yamuna action plan (YAP)
Government of India (GOI) in 12 towns of Haryana, 8
towns of Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi under Yamuna Action
Plan (YAP) which is being implemented since 1993 by the
National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD) of the
Ministry of Environment and Forests. The Japan Bank for
International Cooperation (JBIC) is participating in the
Yamuna Action Plan in 15 of the above 21 towns on the
direction of the Supreme Court of India with soft loan
assistance of about Rs. 700 crore, while GOI is providing
the funds for the remaining 6 towns added later. The
Indian government's plans to repair sewage lines is
predicted to improve the water quality of the river 90%
by the year 2010. The government has spent nearly $500
million trying to clean up the river, most of it going to
waste -treatment stations, yet pollution levels more than
doubled from 1993 to 2005 and continue to rise.
A total expenditure of Rs. 682 crore has been incurred
under the first phase of the Yamuna Action Plan (YAP).The
phase which commenced in April 1993 was completed in
2003 covering 21 towns of UP, Delhi &
Haryana. The second Phase of YAP commenced in
December, 2004. Till September, 2009, an expenditure of
Rs 226.89 crore has been incurred under this phase. The
projects taken up under YAP include interception and
diversion of raw sewage, setting up of Sewage Treatment
Plants, creation of low cost sanitation facilities, setting up
of electric/improved wood crematoria etc. Sewage
treatment capacity of 753.25 mld has been created so
far
under this Plan. Besides YAP, the Government of NCT of
Delhi has taken up sewerage and sewage treatment
works under other schemes to fully address the pollution
load being discharged into Yamuna.

Steps already taken

With the recent awareness towards the water pollution,

Delhi government has finally woken up. It has launched a
massive drive to plant trees along with the catchment
area to prevent the erosion of the loose soil. Near about
20,000 sapling are already planted till 2001 and there is a
target of 60,000 saplings. These plants not only help to
sustain the soil they work as carbon sink for the city also.
This will surely improve the poor air quality of Delhi.

In a recent development, Supreme Court has banned the

discharge of any effluent by Delhi and Haryana
industries. Delhi government has also set up a vigilance
squad to monitor these industries. Delhi pollution control
committee (DPCC) issues notices to additional 800
industries for polluting the river. A Yamuna purification
drive was launched by Public health department in which
15 cities are actively involved. In this drive the first thing
was to control the raw sewage into the river. There are 11
treatment plants along 83 km long sewer line. These
have helped in the reduction of pollution level from 200
mg/l to 30mg/l.

Clearly, there is a lot of activity to improve the quality of

Yamuna water. In spite of all these efforts, it will be quite
some time before we see Yamuna again in its former
glory.
Fig. 1 Average values of selective physico-chemical
parameters measured in Yamuna at upstream and
midstream of Delhi. Most probable number (MPN):
per 100 ml of sample1

1. River as one entity

Rivers don’t follow human boundaries but bound

their own path! But people and governments of
different states (through which Indian rivers pass en
route sea) do not seem to understand that. People
and governments of each state through which the
river pass consider it as their own property with no
sence of the downstream effect. Unless rivers are
treated as one entity with no boundaries the problem
is not going to be solved. But in India, blissfully
unaware of the concequencies, people keep on
exploiting the rivers wishing the downstream user
will eventually solve the problem. It is therefore the
 duty of government to direct different state
governments to join hands. Some fifty years ago, the
condition of river Rhine was just like any Indian river.
The idea of treating rivers as an entity came only
when the six countries through which it flows formed
a joint commission to start a cleaning drive. The
effort payed off and the project is known as ‘the most
impressive environmental achievement in the world’.

2.A totally new sewer system

While our scientists are thinking about nuclear

weapons and space shuttle, nobody seems to be
bothered about the old, outdated sanitation system
of Indian cities. There is absolutely no thinking about
need to find environment friendly sewage system in
our country. The present strategy is to invest in huge
river clean up programmes like the Ganga Action
Plan, the Yamuna Action Plan or the National River
Action Plan to treat sewage. The purpose is to divert
the sewage to a treatment plant with the same
outdated technology, which was used 50 years ago.
This contributes to a lot of burden to the
government, as these treatment plants require a
huge investment.

What we require is a cost effective, new sewerage

system for human and industrial waste disposal. We
should learn from the other countries that are
looking for other alternative paradigms for the
sewage disposal. Dry sanitation or the sanitation
which uses less or almost no water for the waste
disposal is what which we should look for. The
modern sanitations systems should be based upon
 traditional science of recycling but should use the
latest technologies to do so.

3. Stringent regulations for toxic discharge

Serious incidents resulting from spillages or

discharges of toxic chemicals are the pollution
events that make the news. For example, just one
litre of insecticide killed over 1,000 fish in the River
Glaven in Norfolk,UK. Similar incidents keep on
happening in many Indian rivers. In a recent
incidence, hundreds of fishes were found floating
dead in Sutlej river in Punjab. Along with fish many
species of fish eating birds like Darters, Cormorants,
Storks, kingfishers and various exotic ducks as well
as mammals such as otters are involuntary sufferers.
The impact of a slow build-up of pollution over a long
time and in a wide area can be even more serious.
Unfortunately in most of Indian cities, toxic discharge
by industries, Hospitals and such other organizations
is simply dumped into any nearby water body.

Thus government of India should enforce stringent

regulations of toxic discharge into rivers. Even
though there are laws to protect the Indian rivers,
most of people do not know about them. In 1976,
when the Indian parliament passed the 42nd
amendment to its constitution safeguarding the
environment, it became the first country in the world
to do so. The amendment was to “endeavour to
protect and improve the environment and to
safeguard the forests and wild life of the country.” It
imposes a duty on every Indian citizen “to protect
and improve the natural environment including
forests, lakes, rivers, and wild life, and to have
 compassion for living creatures.” According to the
Environment Protection Act of 1986, Environment is
that which includes the “inter-relationship which
exists among and between water, air, and land and
human beings, other living creatures, plants,
microorganism and property.” Essentially, The Water
(Prevention & Control) Act, 1974 can be considered
to be truly the first regulations. It has been amended
many times since then.

Following are the basic Pollution control acts

provided by government of India:

o The Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution)

Act, 1974, and its amendments
o The Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution)
Cess Act, 1974 and its amendments
o The Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act,
1981 and its amendments
o The Environment (Prevention) Act, 1986 and its
amendments
o National Environmental Tribunal Act of 1995
o National Environmental Appellate Authority Act
of 1997
o Hazardous Waste (Management and Handling)
Rules, July 1989
o The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991

4. Water harvesting

Water harvesting is the area where we are still very

primitive. There is no systematic study on the area of
water harvesting in India. Water harvesting is the
 area of research, which has to be exploited to its
fullest in order to save our river systems. Union
ministry of urban affairs and poverty alleviation had
recently (2001) passed a notification making
rainwater harvesting mandatory in Delhi. There was
a new leash of life to the rivers in Rajasthan when
water harvesting structures were built in Alwar
district in Rajasthan. Some reports in press have
started pouring in when some inhabitants of a Delhi
housing society have reported significant benefits
from water harvesting. If the reports are correct and
people are getting such a benefits then this could be
made mandatory for the group housing.

5. Change in mindset

We People, particularly those living along the banks

of the Yamuna, should realise that it is a sacred river
and not a garbage ground or a dustbin to throw
waste. People have to change their mindset with
regard to the Yamuna. One of the tasks of Yamuna
action plan is to launch a massive awareness
campaign among people here so that they can
change some of their habits, which tend to become a
major source of polluting the river. The Delhi
Government and the Slum Department of the
Municipal Corporation of Delhi have already planned
a massive awareness campaign.

you can take your water samples in for free testing at a pool supply
store. if you can't do that ask walmart where you can find a pool test kit
(about $3-5 for PH and chlorine)

if you have no luck with that then you could try to find lithums paper
and chlorine test strips at a hobby/school supply store or hardware store.
Either way will quickly give you readings for PH and chlorine (there is
actually two types of chlorine in the water... look it up... one is
availalable chlorine. the other is something that ius tide=up and not
killing stuff in the water)

for other minerals the poolstore can also analyse those, like iron and
salts

you can boil equal amounts of water in a small, tall clean steel or glass
container and collect or take pictures of the residue.

I used to distill drinking water from tap water and I could tell from the
residue inthe pot if the city was using canal water or well water. Well
water left a lot of fluffy white residue, city water left a brown stain

by the way, I just for fun tested my city water with my pool test kit and
found that the city water has as much chlorine as the pool water. I was
always told to shower and wash my swiim suit afte swimming because
of the harmful pool chlorine!! what an old stupid tale....

so experiments like you are doing hopefully make you see the world
how it really is .. no stupid old tales