Whispers of Desolation: The Yamuna River’s Cry for Redemption

The water quality of the Yamuna river is being negatively impacted by the release of oxygen-demanding substances, suspended solids, and toxic wastes from agricultural, industrial, and domestic sources, as well as by over-pumping aquifers and contamination from substances that promote algal growth.

The flock of Siberian Cranes was overseeing Gauri Shankar’s boats. October to March is the period during which tourists from around Delhi and adjoining areas descend on the Yamuna to witness the snow-white birds. “The advent of these birds,” Gauri Shankar’s brother Ganesh said, followed by, “Couples/YouTubers/Filmmakers come here for shoots during this season.” Perhaps, to their good fortune, what the camera does not capture is the blanket of stench draped over the area.

The ‘Almost Dead’ River

Multiple boatmen, like Gauri Shankar, sluggishly navigate through a serene evening due to the lack of visitors. During the peak visiting hours in the evening, one can only spot a few locals and very few visitors at Ganesh Ghat. “Business has gradually diminished as pollution has increased in the Yamuna,” Shankar laments. The river has indeed endured a harsh decade. As the second-largest tributary of the Ganga River, the Yamuna has witnessed constant degradation due to increased anthropogenic inputs (Suthar et al., 2009; Maheshwari, Sharma, and Sharma, 2011). The water quality of the river is being negatively impacted by the release of oxygen-demanding substances, suspended solids, and toxic wastes from agricultural, industrial, and domestic sources, as well as by over-pumping aquifers and contamination from substances that promote algal growth. These activities contribute to the degradation of water quality in rivers.

With the rise in industrialization and urbanization, industrial and sewage wastes have played a significant role in contaminating the river. Domestic pollution, though, accounts for 85 percent of the pollution in the Yamuna River and is sourced to major cities along the river (CPCB 2010). These cities include Delhi, Ghaziabad, Mathura-Vrindavan, Agra, Etawah, Panipat, Sonepat, and Allahabad. The Delhi stretch of the Yamuna River is about 22 km (13 miles approx.), starting from Wazirabad Barrage to Okhla Barrage, which accounts for 2 percent of the river’s length flowing through the capital. Yet, this stretch alone is responsible for 76 percent of the river’s pollution. Domestic waste mainly comprises organic matter and microorganisms, salts, detergents, nutrients, oil, grease, and others. Domestic waste is primarily associated with human activity in and around the river. “People from outside who come to worship or visit the area often dump garbage in the river; we often try to stop them, but to no avail,” says Ashok Kumar Yadav, who owns multiple boats in the river.

According to a 2015 CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) Report, the river is ‘almost dead’. The constant degradation of the river since then suggests that little has been done to reverse the trend.

The Sacred Drain

The Yamuna holds a revered place in Hindu mythology, treated as a goddess. “People from all over Delhi come to the Yamuna to pray for the good health and well-being of their kin,” explains Yadav. As the twin sister of Yama, the god of death, Yamuna is also associated with the god Krishna and is mentioned as one of his ‘Ashtabharya’, his eight consorts. According to Hindu mythology, bathing or drinking in Yamuna’s waters is believed to wash away all sins. However, this ritual is slowly fading due to increasing pollution in the river. “Earlier, people used to bathe in the Yamuna to wash away their sins, but due to increasing pollution and government restrictions, this ritual is slowly dying,” laments Shankar.

The progressive degradation in the river might not have deterred people from using its water if not for the extensive media coverage it has received, especially in the last decade. “Today, many people don’t even like to come near the river because they feel it is polluted, smelling no different from a sewer – Pehle raunak hoti thi yaha,” reminisces Shankar with a hint of despair in his voice. Not long ago, people from all over Delhi used to immerse Ganesh Idols in the Yamuna as a ritual in the Annual Festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. This practice was banned by the DPCC (Delhi Pollution Control Committee) in 2019. However, even after the ban, little has changed in the river, according to the boatmen.

Despite multiple efforts by the CPCB and both the Central and State governments to alleviate the river’s suffering, including conservation campaigns and major cleaning projects like the Yamuna Action Plan (YAP) I, II, and III, the water quality remains unsuitable for designated best uses in Delhi and eutrophicated segments. Amid widespread skepticism about the ruinous state of the river, some residents of the Ganesh ghats, like the 80-year-old Ram Nath, deny any degradation in the river’s quality. “Will you call your mother dirty? Log apni sanskriti ko bhool rahe hai samay ke sath,” wails Nath, who proudly claims that he bathes in the river every morning.

Apart from being extremely unhygienic, the ghats lack basic facilities like changing rooms and washrooms for visitors, as Shankar points out. “This is preventing this area from becoming a famous tourist spot,” Shankar adds. According to the boatmen, the condition of the ghats has progressively deteriorated. “Earlier, there used to be trained pandits and gotakhors [divers] that the government used to hire, but they have ceased to exist.” According to him, the government has also removed all security personnel from the Ghat, making it vulnerable to miscreants. “Besides miscreants, many people have also committed suicide in the river,” he points out.

Living At Peril

Besides being extremely polluted, the river also regularly overflows, a phenomenon that recurs annually. For most of the year, the river is nothing more than a ribbon of polluted water. In July of this year, it rose to as high as 208.66 meters, causing Delhi’s worst flooding on record. The danger mark in Delhi is 205.33 meters.

“Every year we need to leave our houses for 2-3 weeks, as during the monsoon, the river overflows, making the area uninhabitable,” says Sham Yadav, another boatman residing in the same area. During this period, residents of Ganesh Ghat and other surrounding ghats are forced to live in relief camps set up by the government. “This year was the worst of all. Our homes were completely submerged underwater, and everything we owned was destroyed. We received little support from the government,” Sham lamented. A significant amount of mud still remains settled on the ghats, with stairs in a portion of the ghat entirely submerged under mud.

Despite their annual displacement, living in the influence of such a polluted river poses severe health risks to the population. “People living here have regular bouts of diarrhea and infections ranging from skin to stomach – Jodon mein dard toh logon ko rehta hi hai.” Many people, however, claimed that the situation rapidly improved before the G20 summit. “Force was deployed to guard the Yamuna and prevent visitors from polluting the river, which significantly improved the condition of the river,” echoed the residents of the ghat. “But it was suddenly removed,” with little knowledge about why the force was deployed in the first place. “The condition of the river also dramatically improved during Covid – Jamuna ji ka paani amrit ho gaya tha,” claimed Shankar. “But soon after the curbs were lifted, the condition of the river became dire again.”

The River Of Despair

The Agni Purana describes Yamuna as being black in complexion, standing astride her mount, the tortoise, holding an urn bearing water in her hand. Different ancient texts promulgate different reasons for its black color. One might argue that these ancient texts were successful in predicting the future of the river. It is perhaps the mother of all ironies that in a nation that worships rivers, most of them are in deplorable conditions, with the much-revered “Yamuna maiyya” leading the charge.

On the 19th of November this year, Hindus gathered on its banks to celebrate Chhath Puja, a festival dedicated to the Hindu sun god Surya. Fasting women offered ‘Arghya’ (a Vedic practice of offering water to the sun in the morning) while standing in knee-deep waters. Nath alleges that much of the concern raised by the media is unnecessary noise. He also states that people should not pay heed to that and should freely bathe in the river on the auspicious day.

On introspection, the fact that a polluted river is supposed to wash away one’s sins might be a tough pill to swallow. That aside, the government’s failure to clean the river is not only threatening the life and livelihood of the people who reside in the areas adjoining Yamuna but also in Delhi and all the states it passes through after the national capital. It is the major source of drinking water for millions of Indians and has multiple other uses (Ali and Jain, 2001). The Yamuna Basin is of great economic significance due to its fertility and high productivity, particularly in many parts of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana (Maheshwari et al., 2011).

The horrible state of the river acts as a wake-up call for both the government and the people. The Citizen’s Fifth Report (1999) states:

“India has had a multi-millennial tradition of worshipping rivers. Even though Hindu scholars will not get tired of extolling the ecological elements of Hinduism, of which there are many, there is, nonetheless, the disparity between the word and the deed. Indians, including the river – worshipping Hindus, do not think twice before polluting a river.”

The term ‘Hindu’ has been used here in a pejorative sense. A concerted effort by all religions, castes, and other social identities is required to alleviate the holy river of its misery. In a deeply divided society, people always seek forces to unite. As is the case, the effects of environmental degradation will be indifferent to social identities. It is about time that these issues take center stage.

by Anirudh Mehta