"Delhi starting at grave water crisis:" Delhi Jal Board moves Supreme Court seeking "legitimate share" of water from Haryana

The Delhi government has moved the Supreme Court alleging that the water level in Yamuna river in Delhi has fallen to an all time low as the Haryana government is “stalling Delhi's rightful portion of water” and the national capital is staring at a grave water crisis due to the same. .The plea in Supreme Court sought initiation of contempt proceedings against Vijai Vardhan, Chief Secretary, Haryana and Devender Singh, Additional Chief Secretary, Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Haryana for wilful disobedience of a 1996 order of the Supreme Court in the case of Delhi Water Supply & Sewage Disposal Undertaking & Anr. v. State of Haryana. The top court in the above case had directed that the water level at Wazirabad reservoir be maintained at its full capacity by the State of Haryana, in order to meet the drinking water needs of Delhi..The plea in Supreme Court filed through advocate Shadan Farasat, said that Delhi's legitimate share of water as already determined by the Supreme Court in 1996, should be supplied unhindered. ."Due to non-supply of adequate water by the State of Haryana, the water level in the Wazirabad reservoir stands at only 667.60 feet as against the mandated level of 674.50 feet, as on July 10, 2021. This means that the Wazirabad reservoir is only 31 percent full. This has the possibility of triggering a severe water crisis in the NCT of Delhi. The Petitioner has already had to curtail water for several areas in the NCT of Delhi including President’s Estate, Parliament House and other institutional and diplomatic buildings, as well as many residential areas," the urgency application filed by the Delhi Jal Board before the Supreme Court said..Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha confirmed the development to the press stating that Delhi is “witnessing all-time low water levels in Yamuna river as Delhi's water share is withheld by Haryana.”Chadha stated that the level of Yamuna river at Wazirabad Pond in Delhi should be 674.5 ft, while now the water level of Yamuna has come down to 667 ft, because of which, the entire river has dried up."Haryana has stopped the water supply of Delhi despite repeated orders of the Supreme Court, while the treaty has been signed several decades ago regarding this by both the governments,” said Chadha..The Delhi Jal Board had earlier moved the Supreme Court seeking proper supply of drinking of water and complained that water from Punjab and Haryana was being stopped due to repair work in canals connecting Delhi to the two states.