Shahdara, Barapullah and Sen Nursing Home Drains Lead Pollution in Delhi’s Yamuna Stretch

A DPCC water-analysis report dated September 9 evaluated 22 drains that empty directly into Delhi’s Yamuna between Wazirabad and Okhla, finding eight without flow and the other 14 breaching all prescribed quality thresholds. The Shahdara drain was the most polluted, with total suspended solids at 240 mg/L, COD at 272 mg/L and BOD at 120 mg/L, far above the limits of 100 mg/L, 250 mg/L and 30 mg/L respectively. Barapullah and Sen Nursing Home drains followed, each exceeding the same standards.

Indirect contributors from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, such as Gurugram’s L3 drain and the Sahibabad drain, also recorded high pollution loads. The Najafgarh drain, while delivering the greatest wastewater volume, failed TSS and BOD criteria as well. Delhi Jal Board currently cannot treat all city sewage, leading the government to aim for a two-fold increase in treatment capacity over the next three years.