Quick Take | Dark flows the Yamuna

Even after years of planning, there is no capacity to process about 30 percent of the capital’s sewage and the river is an exhibition of that failure

Clouds hover over the Yamuna river, where a thick layer of toxic foam floats on the water during monsoon, at Kalindi Kunj, in Okhla, Delhi (Photo | Express)

Whitish foam and brownish sludge are again rearing their ugly heads in the Yamuna. While promises to clean the river keep flowing downstream, including a deadline set this June to restore the river’s health by 2027, its water tells a murky tale. Even after years of planning, there is no capacity to process about 30 percent of the capital’s sewage. That damning planning failure is made worse by periodic outage of some of the city’s 37 sewage treatment plants. The least the government can do is put out clear advisories for people not to bathe or fish in the polluted river. And the city must start voting on the government’s action against water and air pollution—starting with the municipal elections next year.