Chandigarh, Jan 28 Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Tuesday said the statement of poisonous water made by former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal “is a political stunt by the Aam Aadmi Party aimed at influencing voters in the upcoming Delhi Assembly elections and deflecting attention from its own failures”.
He said the issue has been raised with the Election Commission of India. “Ensuring a reliable water supply to the national capital is a collective responsibility, which Haryana is fulfilling diligently and without any shortcomings,” he said.
Exposing the failure of the Delhi government, the Chief Minister said in 2021 Delhi filed a petition to which the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) responded. “The CPCB’s reply highlighted the issue of ammonia nitrogen in the Wazirabad pond and mentioned that there is a water treatment plant in Agra capable of treating water with ammonia levels up to 24 mg/l. However, the Delhi government has not taken any steps to upgrade the Wazirabad plant. As a result, the people of Delhi are still forced to consume contaminated water, while Arvind Kejriwal is now blaming Haryana to cover up his own failures.”
CM Saini said the people of Haryana regard the Yamuna River as their mother. “The Yamuna is a life-giving resource for both Haryana and Delhi, and it is our collective responsibility to preserve its purity.”
He condemned the allegation made by Kejriwal, calling it an insult to the faith of Haryana and its people. The people of Haryana view the Yamuna as a sacred river and worship it. He said Kejriwal's accusations are not only baseless but also disrespectful to Haryana’s cultural traditions and beliefs.
He said Delhi receives its drinking water supply of 1,049 cusecs at Munak from the waters of the Yamuna and Ravi-Beas rivers. “Haryana is consistently supplying this water to Delhi through two canals: The Carrier Line Channel (CLC) and the Delhi Branch. Since the commissioning of the Carrier Line Channel in 2014, Haryana has not supplied any water to Delhi through drains or directly from the Yamuna River; instead, clean water is being supplied exclusively through the canal system of CLC and Delhi Branch.”
He assured the Haryana government is committed to ensuring the purity and continuous supply of water to Delhi. The Chief Minister said in a statement that between January 7 and 13, 2021, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) tested the water from Yamunanagar (Haryana) to Wazirabad (Delhi) and investigated the primary causes of pollution. The investigation revealed that dirty water is being illegally discharged between Palla and Wazirabad. In addition, the accumulation of sediment in the Wazirabad pond is causing an increase in ammonia nitrogen levels. However, the Delhi government has not taken any action on the CPCB’s report since 2021. Neither has the illegal discharge of polluted water between Palla and Wazirabad been halted nor has any effort been made to clean the Wazirabad pond.
The Chief Minister urged residents to prioritise water conservation and use water resources judiciously. He said saving water is crucial not only for the present but also for the well-being of future generations.
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