IndiaPosted at: Oct 19 2026 11:41PM


35k Delhiites cleaned 70 ghats under 'Chalo Yamuna'; HM Shah to unveil Rs 8,941 crore water projects: Verma

New Delhi, Oct 19 (UNI) Delhi Water Minister Parvesh Verma on Monday said that over 35,000 citizens cleaned 70 locations along both banks of the Yamuna river, from Wazirabad's Soor Ghat and Signature Bridge to Yamuna Bazar, ITO, Nizamuddin, Sarai Kale Khan and Chilla, as part of the 'Chalo Yamuna Campaign' held on Sunday.
"On a Sunday morning, 35,000 Delhiites were standing on the banks of the Yamuna. Nobody forced them to come. They came because the Yamuna is our mother, and a mother's service needs no invitation," Parvesh Verma told newspersons.
"For years, no minister or Chief Minister of the previous government ever stepped onto a Yamuna ghat to clean it. Yamuna's cleaning stayed in files and speeches. Yesterday, the government and the people stood in the river together," he added.
Notably, students came from over 25 Delhi University colleges with more than 400 from Deshbandhu College alone.
According to the minister, 76,755 kg of MSW was removed from the river bank, while 26 JCBs, 19 tractor-trolleys, 24 boats, seven weed harvesters and trash skimmers, and 269 PWD maintenance vans were deployed to support the cleaning work.
The initiative got multiple departments on board including Irrigation and Flood Control, Public Works Department, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Delhi Jal Board, DUSIB, Delhi Police and the DDMA.
"A child who picked up waste from the Yamuna with their own hands yesterday will never throw waste into it. We are not just cleaning ghats; we are shaping the values of the next generation," Verma said, while he thanked 227 sanitation workers and machine operators who were the first to arrive and the last to leave.
Meanwhile, Verma also informed that on the coming Thursday, the union Home Minister Amit Shah is going to inaugurate and lay foundation stones of projects to the tune of Rs 8,941 crore, to clean the Yamuna.
The number of the projects will be 43 in total and are going to be under the Delhi Jal Board.
These include new 124 MGD STPs at Okhla, upgrading eight STPs, raising the capacity from 78.2 to 140.8 MGD, which is going to benefit 78.5 lakh people.
The new initiatives also include 29 new DSTPs and sewage pumping stations in outer Delhi, covering 358 unauthorised colonies and 113 villages with 36.29 lakh residents.
There will be new 1,034 km of sewer network, going to provide relief to around 25.82 lakh people, while there will be a new 477 MLD water treatment plant at Chandrawal, replacing plants built in 1935 and 1955, and a 4.5 km Mundka trunk drain which is going to benefit a large population.
"Cleaning the ghats shows our intent. Stopping sewage from reaching the river is the permanent solution. Every drop of sewage will be collected, treated and reused. That is the promise behind these 43 projects," the minster said.
He also announced that under the "Birthday with Yamuna" initiative, huts will be built on the river where Delhiites can celebrate their birthdays.
"I appeal to every Delhiite to celebrate your birthday with Mother Yamuna. I will celebrate mine there on November 7. When people bring their happiest moments to the river, they will never let it be dirty again," he added.
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