Harsh Vardhan starts Barapullah drain beautification

Aiming to restore the beauty of Barapullah nullah, which was once a green spot in Delhi, the Centre with the help of The Netherlands kick-started the cleaning work of the drain.

The beautification would be completed by an artwork representing Indo-Dutch collaboration for the Local Treatment of Urban Sewage Streams for Healthy Reuse (LOTUS) project in form of two flowers - 'lotus' and 'tulip', depicting the union of Indian and Dutch strengths.

The foundation stone to mark the beginning of work on cleaning the Barapullah drain was laid by Science & Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan, The Netherlands' Foreign Affairs Minister Bert Koenders and Delhi's Lt Governor Anil Baijal.

With the objective to revive the beauty of Barapullah drain, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and NWO, the Netherlands Science Agency has joined hands to clean the drain, whileDBT in consultation with DDA has identified the Barapullah drain, Sarai Kale Khan for setting up on-site experimental testing lab and for establishing a pilot plant.

On the occasion, Vardhan said, "The government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has underlined cleaning of rivers as a key mission. The clean Ganga project is being personally monitored by the Prime Minster himself."