The water crisis in Delhi has taken a turn with AAP government making allegation s of collusion between senior officers of the Delhi government and the private tanker mafia.
In a letter addressing Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena, AAP leader and Water Minister Atishi stated that in January 2023, the DJB had 1179 tankers in operation, which slightly increased to 1203 by June 2023. However, by January 2024, this number had dropped to 888 without any apparent approval or consultation with the responsible minister. Despite repeated directives to increase the fleet to match previous years’ numbers, the Chief Secretary did not comply, which coincided with the rise of the private tanker mafia selling water illegally.
The reduction in DJB’s tanker deployment, especially during the severe heatwave conditions and heightened water shortage, has been criticized as illogical and suggestive of potential collusion.
She further added, Even now, the number of water tankers deployed by DJB is less than in June 2023, while there are much more severe heat wave conditions and a far greater shortage of water. Common sense says that the number of water tankers deployed by DJB should have been higher in this heat wave than in previous years. However, the fact that this is not the case leads one to believe that there is collusion between the senior officers of the Delhi government and the tanker mafia. Therefore, an inquiry committee should be set up to look into the collusion of the Chief Secretary and CEO DJB with the tanker mafia. Pending an inquiry, both officers may be suspended so as not to influence the proceedings.
The letter further stated, In a meeting held on June 10, the Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor presented photographs that showed private tankers illegally extracting water from the Delhi segment of the DSB and CLC canals, which are part of the Munak Canal system. These images were also displayed at a BJP press conference the next day. Given the current severe heatwave and the critical water shortage in Delhi, it is imperative to prevent any unauthorized water withdrawal.
Therefore, a request has been made to the Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor to assign an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) to oversee the Delhi section of the Munak Canal, ensuring that private tankers are prohibited from filling water illegally from this source.
