Thick toxic foam has reappeared in the Yamuna near Kalindi Kunj, barely a day after BJP MP Manoj Tiwari took a dip at Sonia Vihar and claimed that nearly half of Delhi’s stretch of the river had been cleaned. The recurrence has raised fresh questions about water quality ahead of Chhath Puja.
BY PC Bureau
New Delhi, October 30: Thick layers of white toxic foam have reappeared on the Yamuna near Kalindi Kunj, barely a day after BJP MP Manoj Tiwari took a dip in the river and claimed that nearly half of its stretch in Delhi had been cleaned. The fresh pollution has raised questions about the Delhi government’s claims of progress and the safety of the river for Chhath devotees, even as it promotes a river cruise service as a tourism attraction.
The contrast is striking. While the government has announced major investments in sewage treatment and river rejuvenation and begun trial runs of the proposed Namo Yamuna Cruise Safari, the familiar toxic froth has returned to one of the capital’s most polluted stretches.
On Thursday, Tiwari, the BJP MP from North-East Delhi, took a ritual dip and performed aachman at Sonia Vihar ghat. He claimed that pollution in the river had fallen by nearly half and that around 30 km of Delhi’s approximately 58-km Yamuna stretch had been cleaned during the BJP government’s tenure.
Tiwari cited the return of migratory birds to the Yamuna bank as evidence of improvement and said people could once again celebrate Chhath on the river. He credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and Water Minister Parvesh Verma for the progress, while acknowledging that the entire stretch was not yet clean. He estimated that another three years would be needed to complete the remaining work.
By Friday morning, however, visuals from the Yamuna near Kalindi Kunj showed extensive white foam floating on the water. The development renewed concerns over the gap between official claims and conditions downstream, where sewage and industrial waste continue to enter the river.
The two locations have become central to the political dispute over the Yamuna river’s condition. Tiwari took his dip at Sonia Vihar, on the upstream stretch between Palla and Wazirabad, which has historically recorded better water quality. Kalindi Kunj, farther downstream near the Okhla barrage, lies in a section that receives substantial sewage and waste discharges.
AAP Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj challenged the BJP’s claims, arguing that the relatively cleaner upstream stretch was being presented as evidence of a wider cleanup. He said the Yamuna river becomes heavily polluted after the Najafgarh drain enters it and challenged Tiwari and Water Minister Parvesh Verma to drink water at Kalindi Kunj.
The pollution data offers a more sobering picture. Delhi Pollution Control Committee monitoring for September showed that biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) remained well above the bathing-water limit at several locations. The highest reading was 30 mg per litre at the ISBT Bridge, against the bathing-water benchmark of 3 mg per litre. Water quality deteriorated at three monitoring points, including Wazirabad and Nizamuddin.
The latest episode has also revived questions about the timing and priorities of the government’s Yamuna tourism project. On October 26, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta inspected trial runs of the proposed Namo Yamuna River Safari between Sonia Vihar and Jagatpur. The service is planned along a four-to-six-kilometre stretch, with electric-solar hybrid boats carrying up to 30 passengers. A ride is expected to last around 40 minutes, with a proposed fare of ₹500. Gupta said the service could be launched before Chhath Puja.
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VIDEO | Delhi: Toxic foam seen in Yamuna River. Visuals from Kalindi Kunj area.
#DelhiNews #YamunaRiver
(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/d8jp61yd2p) https://t.co/YsSzVD70i7
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 30, 2026
The government has also announced substantial spending on water and sewage infrastructure. Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently launched or laid the foundation stones for 43 Delhi Jal Board projects worth approximately ₹8,941 crore, aimed at improving water supply, sewage treatment and Yamuna rejuvenation. The BJP government has pledged to clean the river’s Delhi stretch by May 2029.
The foam is associated with pollutants, including detergents and other surfactants entering the river through wastewater. When water passes through structures such as barrages, agitation can trap air and produce persistent froth. Its recurrence at Kalindi Kunj highlights the continuing problem of untreated or inadequately treated sewage entering the Yamuna.
The timing is particularly sensitive because Chhath Puja devotees traditionally enter the river to offer prayers and make ritual offerings. The appearance of foam has raised concerns about whether the affected stretches are safe for bathing. The government’s tourism plans and claims of improvement will therefore face scrutiny against the actual condition of the water.
Delhi’s air quality has also been a seasonal concern, although rainfall around October 29–30 brought temporary relief from the haze. The improvement in air quality does little to address the separate and persistent problem of river pollution.
The Yamuna deterioration is not a recent development. It reflects decades of untreated sewage discharge, industrial effluents and gaps in wastewater management. New treatment plants and infrastructure investments may help, but their impact will depend on whether sewage is intercepted, treatment facilities operate effectively and polluting discharges are stopped.
For now, the contrast is difficult to ignore: a proposed cruise safari on one stretch of the river, a public dip by a ruling-party MP, and thick foam returning downstream within a day. The government’s claims of progress will ultimately be judged not by ceremonial dips or tourism announcements, but by measurable improvements in water quality across the Yamuna’s entire course through Delhi.
