16-07-2025
How Delhi Plans To Plug Water Leaks
New Delhi: With more than half of Delhi's water supply remaining unaccounted for, the govt has engaged a consultant to address the problem and significantly reduce the water loss rate, chief minister Rekha Gupta told Union home minister Amit Shah on Friday.
Officials reported that a staggering 58% of water was wasted in transmission in the city, much higher than the national average of around 20%. In a meeting with Shah, Gupta said the consultant would not only identify the reasons behind such a high rate of water leakage but also suggest measures to strengthen the distribution network and improve infrastructure. This will ensure that the number of domestic water connections increases and the supply of potable water reaches every household through taps.
According to
Delhi Jal Board
's data, Delhi has a 15,600-kilometre water supply network, catering to 21.5 million consumers after treatment at nine treatment plants. A large amount of water is wasted due to 2,800km of the network being older than three decades. The network covers around 93.5% of the city, but the number of connections currently stands at only 2.9 million.
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The chief minister informed Shah that the consultant would study DJB's three previous reports on reducing non-revenue water, prepared in 2003, 2011 and 2021, and come up with a strategy to strengthen the distribution network and draft consolidated schemes to increase water connections and improve the billing system.
She added that a pilot to strengthen the distribution network had already started in northeast Delhi.
Gupta added that DJB had also sought the help of the central govt to reduce the percentage of non-revenue water and systematically increase the number of connections and evaluate groundwater as a source to augment the supply of potable water. She said at least three meetings were held with the Union housing and urban affairs ministry and Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation for this purpose.
Sources said Delhi govt had also decided to engage a project management unit for effective monitoring of various big-ticket projects to augment water and sewage treatment capacity. A request for proposal to engage a project management unit is likely to be floated within a few weeks, Gupta informed Shah.
DJB has also started a drive to fill up a large number of posts of engineers and officers, the home minister was informed.
While the process to engage junior engineers through Graduate Aptitude Test for Engineers has started, retired engineers will also be hired on a contractual basis for senior positions, CM said. DJB has engaged National Productivity Council for the restructuring of its manpower.
Gupta said sewage treatment plants were upgraded in Rohini, Narela, Coronation Pillar and Keshopur phases II and III and the govt made necessary changes to ensure the upgradation of the Chandrawal and Waziarabad plants. The Chandrawal WTP was stuck due to non-felling of trees.
