Amit Shah Inaugurates and Lays Foundation Stones for Yamuna Rejuvenation Projects Worth Rs 8,941 Crore in Delhi

New Delhi, October 22 (H.S.): Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday inaugurated projects and laid foundation stones for initiatives worth Rs 8,941 crore aimed at rejuvenating the Yamuna in Delhi. He said the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, would have the privilege of cleaning the entire river, from Yamunotri to the Sangam.

Addressing the gathering, Shah said that projects worth nearly Rs 9,000 crore for the purification of the Yamuna had been inaugurated and their foundation stones laid. He recalled that soon after his party formed the government in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi convened a high-level meeting and presented his vision for cleaning the Yamuna to the Delhi government and the Union Home Ministry. Shah claimed that more than 40 per cent of the targeted progress had been achieved in a relatively short period.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and other ministers of the Delhi government were present at the event.

Shah alleged that successive governments over the past 30 years had allowed sewage from Delhi's drains to flow into the Yamuna, while approximately 2,000 tonnes of cow dung from dairies were discharged into the river every day. He said that, at one point, governments led by parties allied with the principal opposition in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana had been in power in the two states, allowing industrial wastewater from Haryana and polluted water from Uttar Pradesh to enter the Yamuna.

He said that the same party was now in power at the Centre and in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. According to Shah, the governments in these four jurisdictions had jointly prepared time-bound roadmaps for Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, with the aim of restoring the Yamuna to a clean state by 2029.

The Home Minister said the government sought to build a Delhi where homes were well maintained, drinking water was clean, streets were tidy, mountains of waste no longer existed, and the rejuvenated Yamuna could carry its blessings to people all the way from the capital to the Sangam. He added that Prime Minister Modi had taken up the river's restoration as an unwavering commitment and that a significant part of this resolve was being fulfilled through the initiatives launched on Thursday.

Shah said that 10 projects had been inaugurated and work on 33 others had been initiated. The projects, with a combined cost of Rs 8,941 crore, would enable several lakh litres of wastewater to be treated before being discharged into the Yamuna.

He said projects covering several parts of Delhi had been inaugurated, while foundation stones had also been laid for the upgrading of existing sewage treatment plants (STPs) and the installation of new ones. Decentralised STP pumping stations were also being developed, and work had begun to connect households to sewer lines. He added that the government was advancing sewer rehabilitation, the interception of sewage outfalls and drainage improvements.

Shah accused certain political parties of relying on excuses rather than delivering results. Referring to previous Delhi governments, he said they had repeatedly claimed that they had not received adequate assistance. He asserted that his party had answers to their arguments but said those answers would be delivered after the party in question lost power in Punjab.

He alleged that the previous Delhi government had used an anti-establishment movement as a means of coming to power but had failed to deliver meaningful results beyond engaging in corruption. He also accused it of politicising the issue of Delhi's landfill mountains, claiming that the present government had made progress in reducing their height. Shah said that within two years, gardens would replace these waste mounds.

The Home Minister said the Rekha Gupta-led Delhi government, with assistance from the Modi government, had cleared 2.17 crore metric tonnes of waste and reclaimed 100 acres of land from accumulated garbage. He claimed that the height of the waste mounds at Okhla and Bhalswa had decreased by 30 to 40 metres, while the Ghazipur landfill mound had been reduced by 10 to 15 metres.

Shah further alleged that the previous government had taken no meaningful steps to clean the Yamuna. He cited projects such as Asita East, Baansera and Vasudev Ghat, as well as development works at Sarai Kale Khan and ITO, as examples of the present government's initiatives to improve Delhi's riverfront and public spaces.

He said the government had drawn up a three-year action plan to provide sewerage connections to every household in Delhi and ensure access to clean drinking water in every home.

Referring to opposition protests, Shah accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of using allegations of vote theft as a pretext to protect the votes of infiltrators. He claimed that the Congress had not won an election in Gujarat for 41 years or in Delhi for 18 years. He also asserted that the Bharatiya Janata Party would remain in power for 30 years.

Taking a swipe at Gandhi, Shah said he did not need to travel abroad every six months. He maintained that the Congress would never form a government and accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) of doing nothing to clean the Yamuna. He said protests and demonstrations alone could not secure political power, arguing that governments earned public support by addressing people's grievances and delivering results.

Shah also alleged that the narcotics trade had expanded in Punjab during the AAP government's tenure. He said the public had made up its mind to bring a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government to power in the state. Addressing AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, he said excuses would no longer suffice and that people expected tangible results.

He further alleged that after losing power in Delhi, the AAP had shifted its focus to Punjab, thereby obstructing the functioning of the state's Chief Minister. Shah predicted that the AAP would suffer a decisive electoral defeat in Punjab and pledged that the narcotics trade in the state would be eliminated by 2029.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar