After working towards cleaning the Yamuna since 1993 in two phases of the Yamuna Action Plan,the government is now proposing Yamuna Action Plan-III (YAP-III),seeking a loan of Rs 833 crore from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Meanwhile,Delhi Jal Board (DJB) the implementing agency for YAP in the rivers 22-km stretch in Delhi has received an extension of another year to finish work on YAP-II. The earlier deadline for completion of YAP-II was extended from November 2009 to March 2010. Senior DJB officials said talks are already on with JICA,proposing another loan of Rs 833 crore for YAP-III,which officials said would take at least another two years to kick off. DJB Additional CEO Santosh Vaidya told Newsline: While some cities in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana also fall under YAP-II,major implementation works were to be done by Delhi. The Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Japan International Cooperation Agency have now agreed to extend the term of YAP-II till March 2011. Under YAP-II,the DJB had taken up projects under three broad categories that could help revive the dead river. The projects included rehabilitation of trunk sewers Ring Road sewer,Bela Road sewer and Wazirabad Road sewer tapping the 13 major drains of Delhi as well as rehabilitation and augmentation of the treatment capacity of the two sewage treatment plants (STPs) at Keshopur and Okhla. Vaidya said: As the Okhla STP takes the sewage load of entire South Delhi,we have also increased its treatment capacity from 140 MGD to 170 MGD. The 72-MGD Keshopur STP has been completely refurbished to take the entire sewage load of North and Northwest Delhi. We are now comfortable with the extended deadline to finish all works under YAP-II. While initial estimates pegged the cost of projects in Delhi at Rs 387.17 crore,delays in various projects have increased it to Rs 450 crore. The increased cost is being borne by DJB, Vaidya said. We have only got an extension of tenure for completing the works. DJBs Chief Executive Officer Ramesh Negi said YAP-III would propose to build new sewage treatment plants in the city and rehabilitate the existing ones with better technology. After rehabilitation of trunk sewers is done under YAP-II,our future proposal under YAP-III is to increase our sewage treatment capacity that would take the biological oxygen demand (BOD) in water from the present 20 units to 5 units in future, Negi said. With the present BOD levels,Negi said,the water discharged from STPs into the river can only be used for irrigation. With the BOD level of 5 units,it will be fit for other industrial purposes as well. About Yamuna Action Plans* Yamuna Action Plan-I initiated in 1993. Project originally planned to be completed by April 2000 but later extended to February 2003,with MCD as the main implementing agency in Delh* As YAP-I failed to have an effect on Yamunas condition,particularly on 22-km stretch in Delhi,YAP-II instituted in December 2004 with addition of some new towns polluting the river in UP and Haryana,say DJB officials * Nov 2009 was completion date for YAP-II,now extended till March 2011
