Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari's proposal to introduce water taxis on the 16-km stretch of the Yamuna between Wazirabad and Fatehpur Jat in Uttar Pradesh seems like a good idea. When the entire stretch is ready, the journey will take an estimated 45 minutes, no mean improvement in time and the quality of commuter experience. Currently, it takes three-and-a-half to four hours, depending on the traffic, to cover that distance along a congested road route. The Rs 28 crore project will cover the cost of procuring the vessels, building terminals and approach roads as well as dredging the river. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), which will be implementing the project, has sought permission from the National Green Tribunal to construct an "environment-friendly" water taxi project on National Waterway 110, as the Yamuna is designated under the National Waterways Act, 2016.
It is significant, however, that the application has sought the NGT's indulgence in allowing this project, since there is a blanket prohibition on construction on the Yamuna floodplain. And, indeed, it is the environment-friendly aspect of the project that is an open question for several reasons. The principal one, of course, is the wisdom of allowing construction on the floodplain that has already suffered considerable assault from the Art of Living extravaganza earlier this year, and serial encroachments over the years. The IAWI letter says the jetties will be floating ones, tethered to the shore by jelly-filled cables and can be withdrawn at will. The authority also promises to ensure that the approaches to these jetties are connected to the terminals via kachcha (or impermanent) roads, removing the risk of tar or bitumen causing ecological damage. Battery-powered rickshaws will ply between these approach roads and the terminals - the practical problem of churned mud that will rapidly make these roads impassable may have been overlooked.
The other problem is pollution. The water upstream of the Wazirabad barrage, which this stretch covers, are said to be of "acceptable" quality. This does not suggest an optimum condition for the quality of water but it is an improvement to the stretch downstream between Wazirabad and the Okhla Barrage, where 15-odd drains spew noxious content into the river, turning it into a malodorous drain for most of its course through Delhi. The question is how far the plying of water taxis disgorging oil and related pollutants into the water will enable the water quality to remain acceptable. Perhaps the most disturbing element of the project is the proposal to dredge the river regularly to keep the water taxi service in operation. Dredging in itself is not a harmful activity but there is an element of risk associated with it. One intention of the dredging operation is to recycle the dredged material for the construction industry.
Scientists have pointed out that the top layers along this stretch of the Yamuna basin are mostly sewage and organic matter, unsuitable for construction purposes. The sand that realtors need for their housing projects requires the dredging to be deeper, and it is this that could weaken the banks and destabilise the entire river system in a zone that regularly sees high seismic activity. Given the political power of the sand mafia in the National Capital Region, the temptation to circumvent environmental safety remains a distinct possibility. It is one thing to emulate the enviable water transport systems of Germany and Austria, as this project seeks to do, but to do so within an ecology that is distinctly different is fraught with environmental risks that demand extra caution on the government's part.
