South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People
Date 12 Feb. 2026
To,
1 Sh. Tanmay Kumar,
Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEF&CC)
2 Sh. Rajeev Kumar Mital,
Director General, National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)
Continue reading “Complaint against damage to Yamuna floodplain forested patch by dumping of concrete debris & rocks at ITO Chhath Ghat, Delhi”(Feature Image: A wetland near Jharoda in Wazirabad has been destroyed by dumping of municipal waste over past two years. Source)
This overview tracking wetlands related developments in Delhi shows that the plight of water bodies, lakes, village ponds has only worsened over the past year. Of the 1,367 water bodies officially recorded, only 674 are visible on the ground, underscoring the failure of govt departments to protect these vital resources. Even the surviving water bodies are under threat, gradually being lost to brazen encroachments, waste dumping and unregulated construction under the watch of the very agencies responsible for their upkeep. And the systematic destruction is happening amid multiple ongoing judicial interventions particularly in the NGT.
Continue reading “Delhi’s Waterbodies Going Extinct Under Govt. Watch”(Feature Image: Entrance of flooded Asita East project site on Sept. 05, 2025. Credit: Surendar Solanki)
First the July 2023 and now the September 2025 flood spells in Yamuna has inundated and affected several of DDA’s beautification projects being developed on the Yamuna floodplain over past 8 years. These projects were earlier labelled as part of floodplain rejuvenation but now are being termed as riverfront projects. The violations of norms, ambiguity in progress, potential detrimental impacts on floodplain eco-system, vulnerability to flood damages make it necessary that DDA critically review the projects at this stage rather than continue to waste public money and damage to floodplain in an ad-hoc manner. A photo blog showing impact inf Sept. 2025 floods on these projects can be seen here.
Continue reading “Yamuna Floodplain: Will DDA Review Riverfront Projects or Continue Ad-hoc Experiments?”(Feature Image: Entrace of Asita West projects flooded with Yamuna water on Sept. 05. 2025. Credit: Surendar Solanki)
Through pictures and satellite imagery, this blog documents the impact of Sept. 2025 Yamuna flood on Delhi Development Authority’s (DDA) riverfront projects. These 10 projects are being developed over the past 8 years in river floodplain and had also suffered damages during July 2023 floods. Earlier they were called part of floodplain rejuvenation but now being termed as Yamuna riverfront projects. DDA website has only shown name, size and location of riverfront projects, however has maintained secrecy on important factors of cost, progress, delays, damage and losses concerning these projects.
Continue reading “Yamuna Photo Blog Sept 2025: ‘Riverfront’ Projects submerged Again”(Feature Image: NDRF team gazing at flooded relief camps at Yamuna bazar, Delhi)
In first week of September 2025, Yamuna river in Delhi has again witnessed another unusual flood spell. This is happening two years after the river recorded unprecedent flood event in July 2023. This report compares the July 2023 flood with the one in Sept 2025 underlining the probable factors making these deluges uncommon and man-made flood disaster.
Continue reading “Sept 2025: Why did Yamuna Repeat July 2023 Like Flood Spell in Delhi?”To, July 17, 2025
1 Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena
Honorable LG, Delhi Civil Lines,
New Delhi-110054
Continue reading “Letter: Encroachment of Yamuna floodplain near Wazirabad Barrage”Uttar Pradesh’s Noon river runs again Jalaun farmers in Bundelkhand will not have to toil too much this season to get water for crops. They have almost revived an 81km-long local river that had dried up completely. Community members have restored the drainage basin over a 14km course of Noon river to create a funnel through which water has again entered it. The river had dried up to encroachments and poor rainfall. The revival commenced in 2021 and reached the final stage only recently, with voluntary labour contributions from thousands of local men and women. Officials said the water would start flowing through the entire course of the river in a fortnight. The river is expected to help more than 15,350 farmers.
Continue reading “Yamuna Manthan June 2025: Positive water, river stories from Yamuna basin”(Feature Image: Redstone stuctures at Vasudev Riverfront site on Yamuna. BS Rawat, SANDRP/ April 2025)
The rhetoric of Sabarmati type river front project for Yamuna in Delhi is getting louder. For over a decade, the DDA has already been working on 11 projects disguised as ‘floodplain restoration’. In recent past, none other than the NGT has flagged concerns over permanent structures and concretization work in some of these projects. Notably, all these cosmetic projects have suffered huge damages in the July 2023 floods.
Despite this, showing no regard to laws and sanctity of floodplains, DDA (Delhi Development Authority) has commercialized some of the projects including the Vasudev riverfront and the Baansera park. Since there is no autonomous body functioning in Delhi to hold the DDA accountable, every week there is news about a new riverfront or park project aiming at further commercializing the Yamuna floodplain.
Continue reading “Yamuna Manthan 090525: Will we STOP Commercialization of River Floodplains?”(Feature Image: A view of overflowing Yamuna river at Wazirabad in New Delhi on 13 July 2023. Credit: HT_PRINT/Source: Live Mint)
Post July 2023 unusual flood spell in Yamuna river reaching unprecedented levels in Delhi, the Ministry of Jal Shakti (MoJS) on August 06, 2023, constituted a committee for conducting a “Joint flood management study of river Yamuna for its reach between Hathnikund and Okhla Barrage”. The Committee headed by Chairman, Central Water Commission (CWC) & Ex-Officio Secretary to Govt of India with members from Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, NCT of Delhi and expert Organizations was mandated to examine the meteorological aspects, return period of floods, discharging capacity of barrages, functional requirement of ITO barrage, etc.
Continue reading “MoJS Comm. Report on July 2023 Delhi Floods: Fails to explain unprecedented flood levels”(Feature Image: Line drawing of proposed Pachnad Major Irrigation Project. Source: Amar Ujala)
The findings of the latest Project Dolphin Survey Report released on March 3, 2025, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in presence of Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav have raised significant concerns over proposed Pachnad Major Irrigation Project.
While the survey reiterates the adverse impacts of dams, barrages fragmenting the national aquatic animal’s habitat as the population has been found nearly absent between Narora barrage and Kanpur barrage stretch in main stem of Ganga, it also reveals that the endangered species are preferring refuge in Ganga tributaries and confluence points and has been found in highest numbers along 47 km long river stretch between Chambal and Pachnad in Bhind which still undammed.
Continue reading “Yamuna Manthan 060325: Dolphin Survey Rings Alarm for Pachnad Dam Project”
SANDRP 