“Delhi must receive its fair share of water:” AAP leader Atishi amid water crisis in several parts of National capital

New Delhi [India], May 30 (ANI): Amid the water crises in several parts of the National capital on Thursday AAP leader and Delhi Water Minister Atishi said that Delhi should get its “fair share of water”. She further claimed that the arbitrary action of the Haryana government has caused problems in several parts of the state.

“We have written a letter to the Haryana government, and today we will also reach out to the central government so that Delhi receives its fair share of water. It is the shortage of water that is causing turmoil in various parts of Delhi due to Haryana’s arbitrary actions. If there is no raw water, how will water production happen?,” Atishi said during her visit to Wazirabad Water Treatment Plant for inspection.

“Due to Haryana’s arbitrariness, the capital of the country cannot be plunged into a water crisis,” she added.

Meanwhile, Atishi inspected the Wazirabad Water Treatment Plant, where she witnessed firsthand the repercussions of decreasing water levels.

Atishi underscored the challenges faced by treatment plants in meeting the city’s demand amidst reduced supply from Haryana.

“Delhi is highly dependent on the Yamuna River for its entire water supply. The water that comes to Delhi in the Yamuna River is what is left by Haryana. Today, we are at the Wazirabad pond, where the water level should be at 674 feet. Currently, the water level is 3 feet 5 inches lower. Today, the water level of the Yamuna is at 370.3 feet, while on the same day last year, it was at 374.5 feet,” Atishi said.

“This water from the Yamuna is what supplies water to your Wazirabad water treatment plant, Chandrawal treatment plant, and Okhla water treatment plant. When the water supply decreases, when the water level decreases in the treatment plant, when less water comes from Haryana, how will the water treatment plant produce water?,” she added.

Responding to opposition allegations that the AAP government did not formulate a summer plan and implemented water rationing, AAP leader Atishi clarified, “Water rationing occurs when there is an increase in consumption that cannot be met by our existing water supply. Therefore, we resort to rationing. However, the effectiveness of any action plan also depends on the water supply remaining at normal levels. Water treatment plants can’t produce water, they can only treat it.”

On Tuesday, Delhi minister Atishi accused the Haryana government of not releasing Delhi’s water share even after “so many talks.” She had further asserted if the water supply does not improve in the coming 1-2 days, then “we will move to Supreme Court also.”

Earlier in the day, water crises surfaced from various parts of the city, where residents have had to wait for hours in a long queue for water tankers.

Speaking with ANI, the residents of the Geeta Colony in the East Delhi district have raised concerns regarding the inadequate supply of water from the government. They also complain that the government only provides half the needed amount.

Vinay, a resident of Geeta Colony, told ANI, “We are facing a severe water crisis. Our locality has a population of around 3,000-4,000 people, but the government sends only half the required number of tankers.”

“Although a tanker comes daily, but in this scorching heat, the demand for water has significantly increased. Sometimes, they reduce the amount of water in the tanker, due to which we suffer a lot. While in the absence of tankers, the wealthier residents can buy water, but the poorer ones cannot, due to which they have to drink dirty water, which leads to illness,” he added.

He further asserted, “We have complained to the MLA of the area multiple times, but we have never received a valid response. No one is listening to us.”An elderly resident shared, “I usually come after 10-15 days, sometimes even a month, but as always, I don’t get water.”

Shabru Khatun, a resident of the colony, said, “There are a lot of problems regarding water in this area. We get only one tanker for the entire area. The tanker water is used for drinking and cooking purposes. Sometimes, we don’t even get the tanker, and we are forced to buy bottled water.”