NEW DELHI: Nearly three weeks after Chhath Puja, toxic foam has resurfaced on the Yamuna, renewing concerns over the capital’s recurring river pollution crisis.
A spot check at Kalindi Kunj on Monday showed large portions of the river blanketed in white froth, while waste left behind by Chhath devotees continued to decompose along the banks.
Boatmen deployed by authorities were seen repeatedly steering their vessels upstream and downstream to increase water circulation and push the foam further downriver. Locals near the Kalindi Kunj stretch said officials also “routinely spray chemicals” into the water to break down the froth — a practice often used during festivals and VIP movement. Despite these measures, the foam has persisted, indicating deteriorating water quality in the post-festival period.
The Delhi Pollution Control Committee’s latest monthly analysis reinforces this trend. According to its October report, pollution levels rose sharply after September — a month when the Yamuna recorded one of its cleanest phases in recent years due to strong flows that flushed out accumulated effluents.
Samples collected from the river showed that peak faecal coliform concentration surged to 21,000 MPN/100ml at the ISBT bridge, compared to 3,500 MPN/100ml in September. The site lies just downstream of the Najafgarh drain, the Yamuna’s single largest polluter.
Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) at the same location climbed to 37 mg/l in October, nearly triple September’s 13 mg/l and well above the permissible limit of 3 mg/l. Dissolved oxygen — vital for aquatic life — fell to zero as the river left Delhi, despite being recorded along the entire stretch the previous month. Ideally, faecal coliform must remain below 2,500 MPN/100ml, and DO should stay above 5 mg/l.
The political row over river pollution escalated on Monday after senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Sanjeev Jha and Kuldeep Kumar visited Kalindi Kunj and released videos showing the river shrouded in toxic foam. The footage, now widely circulated on social media, prompted AAP to accuse the BJP-led government of abandoning Yamuna-cleaning efforts after the Bihar elections.
Sharing one such video, AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj posted on X: “With the Bihar elections over, the BJP’s ‘nautanki’ around cleaning the Yamuna has ended.” He added, “Today the river is filled with nothing but foam. This clearly shows BJP has no intention of removing pollution.”