Drinking water shortage looms over Delhi as 3 plants closed; CM warns of rationalising supply

The national capital may suffer a drinking water shortage as the Delhi government has implemented a 25 percent reduction in supply. This decision comes in the wake of the closure of three water treatment plants due to the rising water level of the Yamuna River.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal visited the Wazirabad water treatment plant and expressed concern over the "acute shortage" of water. "Due to an increase in the Yamuna water level, many water treatment plants had to be closed. I visited the Wazirabad plant on the banks of the Yamuna. We will start it as soon as the situation turns to normalcy," he tweeted.

In an earlier tweet, Kejriwal announced the closure of the Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants due to the rising Yamuna level.

"The water treatment plants at Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla are being shut due to the rising Yamuna water level. Due to this, there will be a problem of water supply in some areas. These plants will start functioning as soon as the Yamuna water recedes," he earlier said in a tweet in Hindi.

The chief minister said the water supply may be affected in parts of the city by the shutting down of treatment plants.

The Jal Board also issued a notice, saying, "Due to extreme high level of Yamuna water, Wazirabad Raw Water Pump houses , 120 MGD VT Pump House at Wazirabad which supplies water to Chandrawal Water Works and Okhla Raw Water Pump House supplying water to Okhla Water Works have been submerged into water due to which water production from Wazirabad Water Works, Chandrawal Water Works, Okhla Water Works will remain affected till situation improves."

Areas expected to face the brunt of the water shortage include Civil Lines, Hindu Rao Hospital, Kamla Nagar, Shakti Nagar, Karol Bagh, Pahar Ganj, NDMC areas, Old & New Rajinder Nagar, Patel Nagar (East & West), Baljeet Nagar, Prem Nagar, Inderpuri, Kalkaji, Govindpuri, Tugalkabad, Sangam Vihar, Ambedkar Nagar, Prahladpur, Ramleela Ground, Delhi gate, Subhash Park, Model Town, Gulabi Bagh, Punjabi Bagh, Jahangirpuri, Moolchand, South Extn., Greater Kailash, and parts of Cantonment areas in South Delhi. These areas rely on the water supply from the affected Wazirabad Water Works, Chandrawal Water Works, and Okhla Water Works WTPs, the statement said.

In light of the situation, the Jal Board advised the public "to make judicious use of water and make every effort to conserve it." The authorities also urged people to contact the central control room for water related problems and and in case of demand of Tankers.

Earlier, in the day, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) convened a meeting, chaired by LG VK Saxena, to discuss the flood situation and its impact on water supply. The authorities have decided to rationalize water supply in the city, considering the shutdown of the treatment plants.

"There is going to be an acute shortage of water. The water production from the three plants has been reduced by 25 percent. Water rationing will have to be done and people could face a shortage of water for the next one or two days,” Kejriwal told the reporters after the meeting.

The water level at Yamuna river stabilised after reaching 208.62 metres, at 1 pm on Thursday, smashing the all-time record set 45 years ago by a significant margin. However, a slight increase was recorded at 5 pm with the water level reaching 208.65 metres.

Roads turned into rivers and water gushed into houses, crematoriums and shelter homes, public and private infrastructure, impairing daily life in the national capital.

Central Water Commission (CWC) Director Sharad Chandra said the rate of water flow rate at the Hathnikund barrage in Haryana dropped to 80,000 cusecs at 4 pm.

"The water level has stabilised ... It is expected to drop to 208.45 metres by 3 am on Friday," he told PTI.