New Delhi: In a renewed push to tackle pollution in the Yamuna, the Delhi government’s Irrigation and Flood Control (I\&FC) Department is preparing to install floating trash boom barriers at two key points along the Shahdara drain outfall. The move is aimed at intercepting solid waste and floating debris before it enters the River.
According to officials, the I\&FC has already issued a tender for the project, which is estimated to cost Rs10 lakh. Once awarded, the work must be completed within 75 days, the tender document states. The project will be executed under the direct supervision of the Executive Engineer of I\&FC’s Civil Division 3.
The proposed boom barriers, long, floating devices designed to capture trash in flowing water, will be made from permanently inflated synthetic fabric such as PVC-coated nylon or polyester. As per the specifications, the material should have a tensile strength of 180–200 kilograms and come with a minimum one-year guarantee. All necessary accessories, including buoys, ropes, and shore anchors, are to be supplied by the contractor.
Each 25-metre segment of the boom will require anchoring to ensure stability and effectiveness in the flow of the drain. “At each 25-metre connection, an anchor has to be deployed according to the specification and drawing… complete in all respects… for controlling trash in flowing water,” the tender document notes.
Boom barriers are increasingly being adopted worldwide to contain waste in rivers before it can spread into
larger water bodies such as lakes, estuaries, and oceans. Delhi has already implemented similar interventions at other polluted water channels, including the Kushak drain in May,
and earlier tenders were floated for the Barapullah drain
in March.
The Shahdara drain is one of the largest contributors of pollution into the Yamuna. According to data presented by the Delhi environment department to a high-level committee of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in January 2023, the Najafgarh drain is the top polluter, accounting for 68.71 per cent of wastewater flowing into the Yamuna.