New Delhi: The newly formed BJP government in Delhi has placed the revival of the Yamuna River at the forefront of its agenda, with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta leading the charge. In a significant push toward restoring the river, the state government—backed by the Centre—is undertaking a comprehensive plan to clean, beautify, and transform the Yamuna into a vibrant riverfront.

Chief Minister Gupta recently held high-level meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to discuss the future of the Yamuna.

A major highlight of these discussions was the proposal to develop the riverfront on the lines of Ahmedabad’s famed Sabarmati Riverfront, blending ecological restoration with public-friendly development.

To streamline the massive effort, it has been decided that only two principal committees will oversee the revival project—one headed by CM Rekha Gupta and the other by the Delhi Chief Secretary. All previously existing committees related to the Yamuna revival will either be dissolved or merged into these two. The river enters Delhi at Palla village and flows for about 44 kilometers before exiting at Jaitpur in South Delhi. While the water remains relatively clean up to Wazirabad, the 22-kilometer stretch from Wazirabad to Okhla is severely polluted and resembles a drain.

Since the BJP’s return to power in Delhi, a ₹1,500 crore plan has been launched to overhaul the city’s sewage infrastructure. This initiative includes the construction of 40 new sewage treatment plants (STPs), aiming to drastically reduce the inflow of untreated sewage into the Yamuna and improve overall water quality.