Brick by brick, the litany of a river (The Sunday Standard) 6 Nov 11)

Last Updated : 06 Nov 2011 09:13:16 AM IST

NEW DELHI: The Yamuna is dying a slow death in Delhi. At least 40 per cent of the Yamuna floodplain has already been claimed by ‘development’ activity, and though the Delhi government appears to be doing its best to save the remainder, encroachment along the riverbed continues unabated.


Despite a moratorium on construction on the riverbed, imposed by Delhi’s Lieutenant-Governor (LG) Tejendra Khanna in 2007, two controversial projects still managed to get clearance to be located on it. They are the Millennium Bus Depot (MBD) near the CWG Village, and the DMRC flats being constructed at the Yamuna Bank metro station. Neither project has, however, been cleared by the Delhi Urban Arts Commission (DUAC), set up by Parliament in 1973 to maintain the aesthetics of Delhi’s urban space. “No riverbed project, including the MBD, has got clearance from the DUAC since 2007,” said K T Ravindran, former Chairman of the commission.

The MBD was originally permitted on the Yamuna floodplain with the assurance that it would be a temporary structure for the duration of the 2010 CWG. Subsequently, the DTC has refused to budge from the 60 acre area. Their argument: as a heavy investment of `60 crore of public money has already been made, it ought to be used to park the thousands of buses required for the city’s public transport system. A PIL, seeking demolition of the depot has been filed, and the matter is pending before the Delhi High Court. When contacted, the LG’s office refused to comment, stating that the matter was sub-judice.

At Yamuna Bank metro station, mean-while, DMRC is building around 90 flats to house its maintenance staff. This is also on the floodplain, and has been opposed by DUAC, which earlier said it was misled by DMRC about the project. DUAC maintains that DMRC had not informed it about the staff quarters when it sought clearance from it for the project.

According to the zonal development plan for the river, the stretch of the river from Burari in the north, to Jaitpur in the south, falls in the ‘O’ Zone. No construction activity is permitted in this area, as the 22 km stretch includes the entire floodplain of the river, and is its water recharge zone. “Unfortunately, at the moment, there’s no legal protection for the river. It is being viewed as a waterbody, rather than a complete ecosystem that needs to be preserved,” said Suresh Babu, Director, Water Policy and River Basins, WWF.

Over the past 10 years, the floodplain has witnessed large scale construction, with housing colonies coming up in east Delhi. The Shastri Park metro station and the Akshardham temple were among the first structures on the riverbed. “The CWG Village, bus depot and several new roads and flyovers, like the Ring Road Bypass, are all located on the floodplain. Over the years, development along both its banks has led to gradual narrowing of the river. During the monsoons, these areas get flooded, as the additional water has no place to go,” says Manoj Mishra, convenor of the NGO Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan, involved in its restoration.