On Tuesday, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongly criticized the Delhi government amidst an intensifying water crisis in the capital, accusing it of mismanaging the city’s water resources and alleging corruption within the Delhi Jal Board.
“Water is being stolen under the Delhi government’s protection. The Delhi Jal Board, its officers, chairman, and the Delhi government are responsible for the water crisis,” stated Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva during a press conference.
Sachdeva also highlighted the timing of the government’s response, noting that the Summer Action Plan, intended to address the increased water demand during the hot months, should have been prepared much earlier.
“The Summer Action Plan should be chalked out in February or March, not when the crisis is reported in the media. Right now, Delhi is struggling for even a drop,” the Delhi BJP chief emphasized.
“In a few months, Delhi will struggle with floods because they have not cleaned the drains,” he added.
The ruling AAP has accused BJP-ruled Haryana of withholding Delhi’s share of water for several days, worsening the crisis. On Monday, Lt Governor Saxena met with Delhi ministers Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj, assuring them that he would address the water supply issue with the Haryana government. He also advised the ministers to avoid blame games and focus on resolving the issue amicably.
“The LG advised the ministers to not get into pointless blame game and resolve the issue amicably with the neighbouring states. He pointed out that even if Haryana were to give additional water above its allocated share, Delhi did not have enough water treatment plants (WTPs) and capacity to treat the water and supply to the people of Delhi,” the L-G office stated.
Saxena highlighted that if the 25 percent wastage of water in Munak canal due to lack of repairs and theft, and 54 percent unaccounted water, including 40 percent leakages and theft within the city, are addressed, the water crisis in Delhi would be significantly mitigated, the statement added.