Delhi Jal Board urges Supreme Court to initiate contempt proceedings against Haryana

Haryana ‘wilfully’ disobeyed Feb. 1996 order of court to maintain water level at Wazirabad reservoir at full capacity to serve drinking water needs of Capital, it states.

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has asked the Supreme Court to initiate contempt proceedings against Haryana Chief Secretary Vijai Vardhan and the Additional Chief Secretary, Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Devender Singh, for ‘wilfully’ disobeying a February 1996 order of the court to maintain the water level at the Wazirabad reservoir at full capacity to serve the drinking water needs of the Capital. “Due to non-supply of adequate water by Haryana, the water level in the Wazirabad reservoir is only 31% full. This has the possibility of triggering a severe water crisis in Delhi. The petitioner has already had to curtail water for several areas in Delhi, including the President’s Estate, the Parliament House and other institutional and diplomatic buildings as well as many residential areas,” the DJB submitted.