Delhi floods: centre, state must jointly find lasting solution
The national capital has gone under water. The rise of River Yamuna’s water level has marooned Delhi’s iconic sites: from the historic Red Fort to the most revered Raj Ghat memorial, water has reached everywhere. In the last 33 years, Yamuna has breached the ‘danger level’ in the capital city over 25 times. The river’s flow is largely regulated by the precipitation in its upper catchment area and its lower catchment area. While the former spans from the Himalayas to Haryana, the latter includes areas from Haryana to Old Delhi. The heavy rains in northern India have put pressure on Haryana’s storage system, forcing the authorities in that state to release water from the Hathnikund barrage into River Yamuna. This has resulted in the rise in Yamuna’s water level, which has predominantly affected Delhi’s low-lying areas. However, some other parts of the capital are also getting waterlogged as a result of the backflow from the city’s 18 major drains due to the swollen Yamuna. Other drains spanning over 2000 km along the roads are also clogged with solid municipal waste. These drains, along with the storm water drains, need urgent cleaning and desilting.
Rivers flow through cities across the world. Cities, in fact, were built on the banks of rivers. But nowhere does one see such an annual calamity-like situation. This is because those governments are committed to protecting the lives and property of their people. The politicians in Delhi have, however, made the situation worse by engaging in ugly blame games on national television. The ruling Aam Aadmi Party accused the BJP of deliberately causing floods in the capital, claiming that the water from BJP-ruled Haryana’s Hathnikund barrage could have instead been released into the east and west Yamuna canals, therefore saving Delhi.
Ministers in the state government have also accused the Central and state government officials of not responding to their calls to help the people. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal wrote to the Centre, requesting it to stop Haryana from releasing water into Yamuna. The Centre responded by saying that not releasing water from Hathnikund would cause a bigger problem.As a long-term measure, the Central and state governments must jointly build strong and higher embankments to prevent future flooding in the low-lying areas. Political battles aside, both sides must realise that people’s lives are at stake here. It is high time they stop sparring and find a lasting solution to Delhi’s woes.