Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has set a three-year target for the rejuvenation of the Yamuna, reiterating the government’s commitment during a Chhath gathering at the Dhai Pusta ghat in Sonia Vihar on Saturday. Thousands of devotees gathered along the riverbank to offer prayers to the setting sun.
Gupta visited the ghat and participated in the Chhath rituals with devotees. She also travelled by boat with North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari to inspect several Chhath ghats along the Yamuna, according to a report by Jagran – New Delhi.
The Chief Minister said the Yamuna would be rejuvenated within the next three years under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She also said the government was committed to supporting Sanatan culture and the organisation of public festivals.
The statement restates a broad political and administrative commitment, but the report does not provide details of the proposed rejuvenation programme, its funding, the agencies responsible for implementation or the specific pollution-control and river-management measures that would be taken. No project-wise timeline or measurable water-quality target was cited.
The Yamuna remains a central civic issue for Delhi because its riverfront is used for religious gatherings while also requiring arrangements for sanitation, lighting, drinking water and public safety. At the Sonia Vihar ghat, officials deployed police and civil defence personnel during the festival. Preparations for the following morning’s prayers had also been completed, the report said.
Tiwari praised the arrangements at the ghat, including cleaning, lighting, water supply and security. He said campaigns to revive the Yamuna were continuing. Delhi minister Kapil Mishra also extended greetings to devotees and alleged that the previous Aam Aadmi Party government had engaged in corruption in the name of cleaning the river. The report did not provide supporting documents or responses to that allegation.
The event brought together two distinct parts of the Yamuna’s urban role: a heavily used public and religious space, and a river requiring long-term restoration. The ghat arrangements addressed immediate public needs during Chhath, while the Chief Minister’s three-year pledge points to a larger programme whose institutional design and implementation details remain to be set out.
The next stage will depend on the government specifying the rejuvenation plan, identifying responsible agencies and publishing the milestones against which progress can be assessed. For now, the public commitment was made at Sonia Vihar during the Chhath festival, while the operational details of the three-year target were not announced.
