Yamuna Cleanup: Eviction Notices, Floodplains And A River Still Polluted

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:02]Today it happened that Yamuna is called mother but Yamuna seemed so dirty that it was noticed that even the flat owners got scared, all of us are Jiggy people. We are poor.

[00:00:21]This STP is discharging its under-treated sewage into the Yamuna, due to which there is fouling in the Yamuna.

[00:00:30]Now they say O zone, so ozone is applicable only to us. Here, big five-floor hotels are running with seven floors.

[00:00:39]Delhi is once again trying to clean Yamuna and as part of that effort, families living in the river's flood plain are receiving eviction notices. He pasted the notice and went away saying take it secretly. It is written in the notice that we are giving 15 days time. Empty the juia within 15 days.

[00:00:58]Now tell me where will we go with our small children?

[00:01:04]What loss is the government suffering because of the poor man?

[00:01:07][Music] The settlements fall in Delhi's ozone and ecologically sensitive area along the Yamuna floodplain where construction and habitation are restricted under the city's master plan. But [Music] many families living here, they have spent decades building homes, livelihoods around the settlements [Music] when the government had to be removed, the policeman had to be removed, the DDO had to be removed, then where was the government sleeping at that time, where was the video guy sleeping, when the poor slum dwellers would fill the land, clean the garbage and build it, then they would say this is my father's, this is my grandfather's [Music] Kejriwal said where the glory of slums was told, after surveying the survey, survey papers were given, numbers were also given to us, everything was given [Music] we have all the proof, the government gave the order to conduct the survey, then what problem does the government have with the slum dwellers that they are harassing them, today they settle them, get them built, after taking bribes, and then they come with groceries to demolish them, what kind of system is this, where will we go from here, has anyone told us anything like this? Don't tell anything. Nothing was mentioned in the notice. He said that after breaking it, you all can go and take your own room wherever you want to live. If we leave from here, brother, where will we pay the rent? [Music] ₹10,000 ₹1,000 they earn 4000, 3000. What can we do with it? Will we treat the disease or eat, even the cylinder has become so expensive. On what will you cook and eat?

[00:02:46]These are the slums that have been auto generated.

[00:02:48]The state has, the government has given no facility to these people. These People Have Built It.

[00:02:56]Residents fear that being pushed out of the settlements could also mean losing access to nearby work, schools and support systems. They depend on everyday. The new place will remain. Where will we find work, what will we do where, which place will we go to, will we not go to, what will happen? It will not happen to us.

[00:03:14]We have been living here for 25-30 years. So, we have mingled here.

[00:03:21]What's here? What is not there. We will earn money anywhere and eat it at this distance.

[00:03:27]This city is being run essentially by the manual work being done by thousands and millions of workers. Where Will They Stay? These people who are staying in the Yamuna River Band. Ah it's of course not their first choice. It is out of danger. Out of any other option that they have been offered. The servant goes to sweep. He goes to do everything.

[00:03:49]If you are not poor then the late person's house will stink. Pillu will explode in the kitchen.

[00:03:55]How many times will this landlord turn around and die?

[00:03:58]Why? You will not remain poor.

[00:04:03]Similar eviction notices were also issued to nearly 310 families living around the Yamuna Bazaar Ghat area.

[00:04:12]We ask what is the problem with the government also? Now they say ozone. So ozone is applicable only to us. Here, big five-storey hotels are running with seven floors.

[00:04:23]Inside Ozone, a hospital is also coming, a Gurudwara is also coming, Tibet Market is also coming, Secretariat is also coming. Your metro is also coming.

[00:04:34]You tell me, if you separate a fish from water, will it die or suffer? So this was our livelihood. Today it has happened that Yamuna is called mother. But Yamuna is dirty.

[00:04:46]So it turned into drains. Will the river become clean if we remove it?

[00:04:55]For decades, successive governments have promised to clean the Yamuna. Allocating thousands of crores for river cleaning projects and sewage treatment plants. Yet large stretches of the river in Delhi remain heavily polluted.

[00:05:17]Whichever industry I find illegal water polluting. I can pinpoint whoever pollutes the Yamuna.

[00:05:24]And you see this identification.

[00:05:27]Currently, more than 500 such illegal dyeing units are running in Delhi, which are illegal in all the residential areas.

[00:05:37]This is the STP of Yamuna Vihar which is a sewage treatment plant that treats domestic sewage. You can still see that frosting is coming in. And all this frothing water further reaches Kalandi Ghat on the Delhi border. Due to which there is frothing inside Yamuna.

[00:05:55]Thousands of illegal industries are running.

[00:05:57]Whatever discharge they all have, it comes into these STPs. There are STPs which can only clean domestic sewage.

[00:06:02]They cannot clean industrial effluent.

[00:06:07]This is the vegetable market of Ghazipur. I am showing you this inside it. I have marked these locations. All these units are jeans dyeing units.

[00:06:17]If you guys get a little view on the rooftops, you will see these jeans inside it. There are small drains running near it.

[00:06:24]This is a storm water drain to collect all the rain water.

[00:06:29][Music] All these units inside it discharge all their effluent into the stem water drain.

[00:06:38]Our governments are spending crores of rupees to save our rivers from getting polluted and to prevent pollution from entering the related Shadra drain and Ghazipur drain.

[00:06:46]But this is the condition of Delhi.

[00:06:51][laughter] Give us a place to live or give us a complete place, even a small place to live somewhere, give us a place here or give it somewhere else, give it to us here so that we don't have to leave. This is all we say to the government.