Delhi is dependent on neighbouring states to meet approximately 90 per cent of its residents' drinking water needs. Despite this, it is failing to conserve the available water and supply clean drinking water to its legitimate consumers. Years of neglect have worsened the situation to the extent that only about 50 per cent of the drinking water available from Water Treatment Plants (WTPs) and other sources is reaching consumers. The remaining water is either being wasted through leakage or is being stolen.

The Delhi Jal Board faces the significant challenge of preventing water wastage, but it does not even know how much water is lost to leakage, flowing onto roads and into drains. The government claims that over 93 per cent of households have a piped water supply, but the reality is different. Many unauthorised colonies and slum clusters, including Sangam Vihar and Devli, do not have water connections. In many places, the water supply is either irregular or contaminated. The tanker mafia takes advantage of this by selling stolen water to them.

Contamination Concerns And Legal Scrutiny

It has been reported that in most places, sewer lines run alongside water pipelines. This has led to the problem of contaminated water supply in many areas. The Delhi High Court and the NGT have expressed their displeasure over the supply of contaminated water on several occasions. The issue of contaminated water supply in several places, including Yojana Vihar, Anand Vihar, and Janakpuri, has reached the courts. According to the Delhi Jal Board's water quality monitoring report from December 22 to 26, out of 7,129 samples collected from various locations, 100 were found to be unsatisfactory. Some samples were also taken from underground reservoirs and booster pumping stations. Samples were collected from Mansarovar Park, Puran Nagar, Palam DDA Flats, Dwarka Sector 13, Bhagat Enclave in Uttam Nagar, Vijay Vihar and Kiran Garden, Siraspur booster station, Mohammadpur, Vijay Colony in Burari, Jonapur, and Ghitorni.

Aging Infrastructure And RO Wastage

According to a Delhi Jal Board report, out of the capital's 15,600-kilometre-long pipeline network, 2,800 kilometres (approximately 18 per cent) are over three decades old. Due to being damaged, there is a risk of contaminated water reaching homes. These need to be replaced. Delhi's Water Minister, Parvesh Verma, has also stated that pipelines in many places in the capital are 50 to 80 years old. In many areas, including Central Delhi, water is being supplied through decades-old pipelines.

The previous AAP government had claimed that approximately 3,500 kilometres of old pipelines were replaced during its tenure, but the problem still persists in most areas. Approximately Rs 30,000 crore are required to improve the drinking water supply situation. More than Rs 30,000 crore are needed to replace them. This work will be carried out in a phased manner. The water from Water Treatment Plants (WTPs) in Delhi meets quality standards, but it often becomes contaminated by the time it reaches homes due to damaged pipelines. For this reason, people use RO (Reverse Osmosis) systems. There are approximately 8,000,000 domestic RO systems installed in Delhi, leading to the wastage of over 40,000,000 litres of drinking water daily.

Administrative Challenges And Funding Delays

In recent years, the situation has been exacerbated by disputes between the Aam Aadmi Party government and the central government. Corruption within the Jal Board has increased its losses. Due to complaints of corruption, the Delhi government's finance department also delayed the release of funds to the Delhi Jal Board in the year 2023-24. This severely affected maintenance work. After the formation of the new government, the problem of fund allocation has been resolved, but there has not been much improvement in the water supply situation and the work of replacing pipelines.

New Budgetary Provisions And Strategic Partnerships

The Delhi government has made a provision of Rs 9,000 crore for water supply and sewer lines in the 2025-26 budget. To improve the water and sewer systems, Rs 734 crore have been released for 68 assembly constituencies. For the first time, funds have been issued for individual assembly constituencies, allowing for swift action to be taken to resolve issues. Under the Chandrawal catchment area improvement project, 1,000 kilometres of new water supply pipelines will be laid. Work on laying new pipelines is underway in Gandhi Nagar, IP Extension, Yojana Vihar, Jagriti Enclave, and the Jhilmil industrial area. A decision has been made to have the water supply network studied by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) or other technical experts. Further steps will be taken based on its report. An agreement has been made with IIT Kanpur to make water management in the capital more effective.

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Progress Under AMRUT Schemes

Under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 1 scheme, 800 crore rupees were spent in Delhi. With this, more than 200 kilometres of old pipelines were replaced in Old Delhi and other locations. In addition, flow meters were installed on water distribution lines. Along with the construction of a reservoir and a booster pumping station in Mangolpuri, the water storage capacity was increased in Sonia Vihar and Najafgarh. Several other works were also carried out. To provide drinking water and sewer line networks to every household in the capital and to improve the condition of water sources, the central government has allocated Rs 2,880 crore for AMRUT 2. Rs With 800 crore, the sewage network in unauthorised colonies will be strengthened. Work will be undertaken to provide drinking water in the slum clusters located in the NDMC area.

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