Yamuna River Pollution: Hazardous foam was seen floating on the Yamuna river.
Devotees were seen taking a dip in the Yamuna river near Kalindi Kunj in Delhi on the first day of Chhath puja today as alarming white, toxic foam covered the river. The water of the river, considered holy, is barely visible in grim visuals shared by news agency ANI.
On Chhath Puja, a festival dedicated to the Sun God and mainly celebrated by the people from Bihar, Jharkhand and bordering areas in Uttar Pradesh, devotees gather and take a holy dip in water bodies during the four-day festivities.
The hazardous foam seen floating on the Yamuna river was caused due to increased ammonia levels and high phosphate content, a result of industrial pollutant discharge into the river. Ammonia which is an indicator of pollution in the river, was at around 2.2 ppm (parts per million) on Saturday and Sunday.
Owing to this, water supply in some parts of Delhi was also impacted yesterday as pumping from Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad, Chandrawal and Okhla water treatment plants was affected, Delhi Jal Board informed in a statement yesterday.
Delhi was also blanketed by toxic air after the crackers ban amid Diwali was widely violated in the national capital. Sharp increase in stubble burning in the last few days also remained a major contributed to the rise in air pollution.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) hit the "severe" category in Delhi for the third straight day yesterday with people complaining of breathlessness and itchy eyes and experts raising concern about the pollution levels in the city.