Delhi targets 1,000 MGD water supply for summer

With water demand soaring alongside rising mercury, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has set a target of supplying 1,000 million gallons per day (MGD) during peak summer months under its summer action plan. As part of this plan, the DJB is ramping up its fleet of tankers, increasing tubewells and ranney wells, and expanding access through public hydrants, officials said.

Addressing a gathering in Burari during the flag-off ceremony of 1,111 GPS-enabled tankers, Delhi chief secretary Dharmendra said, “The summer season has started, and now the biggest challenge is to provide timely and adequate water to every citizen. These tankers will help provide water, especially in JJ clusters, unauthorised colonies, and areas where supply pipelines have not reached or are disrupted due to summer.”

The number of tankers has been increased from 961 last year to 1,111 this year, a jump of over 15%. However, Dharmendra added, “Tankers alone are not enough. We are working to increase the water availability.”

DJB currently operates nine water treatment plants (WTPs)—at Chandrawal, Wazirabad, Haiderpur, Nangloi, Okhla, Dwarka, Bawana, Bhagirathi, and Sonia Vihar—all of which are functioning at full capacity, according to officials. Delhi largely depends on neighbouring states for water, with around 90% of its supply coming from the Yamuna River, the CLC Munak and DSB canals from Haryana, and the Upper Ganga Canal via Muradnagar in Uttar Pradesh. Internal sources include tubewells and ranney wells —deep collector wells that tap into riverbank groundwater.

This summer, the DJB is operating 5,834 tubewells—an increase from 5,726 in 2023 and 5,498 in 2022, officials said. Four defunct ranney wells are also expected to be made operational within 15 days, they added.

Despite these efforts, Delhi still faces a significant water deficit. As per the economic survey presented by the Delhi government in March 2024, the city’s water requirement is pegged at 1,290 MGD based on a consumption norm of 60 gallons per capita per day. This leaves a demand-supply gap of over 290 MGD, a shortfall that typically worsens during May and June when river levels drop.

To mitigate distress in high-demand zones, DJB has set up a 24x7 helpline (1916) for water-related complaints. “At Jhandewalan Command and Control Centre, we will monitor the complaint status to reduce the time of complaint resolution,” Dharmendra said. He also urged residents to use water judiciously, report and fix leakages at home, and adopt rainwater harvesting.