New Delhi, Oct 30 With the aim of improving groundwater recharge, the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) has renovated almost 1,200 rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems across the city, officials said on Friday.
The DJB, which is the water management agency in the national capital, has also decided to maintain these systems so that functionality can be ensured.
“Of the total systems, 500 are those systems which belong to other departments like the Municipal Corporation of Delhi schools. We have decided to maintain all these systems and conduct regular inspections,” a senior DJB official said.
According to the building bylaws, for all the buildings constructed from 2001 in the national capital, on a plot of 100 square metre (sqm) and above it is mandatory to have a rain water harvesting system.
However, till now, even after many efforts by the government, the system has not been adopted on a mass scale.
The Delhi government has also decided to come up with a Rainwater Harvesting Policy 2026 to boost groundwater recharge and control urban flooding, aligned with the Master Plan Delhi-2047.
“The policy connects rainwater harvesting with drainage and flood management, tackling water-logging and groundwater recharge together,” officials said.
Water Minister Parvesh Verma has directed DJB officials to jointly inspect government premises to ensure that existing RWH systems are made functional and new systems are installed in every government building.
To encourage more people to get RWH systems, DJB offers two kinds of incentives to property owners: firstly, after construction, Rs 25,000 financial aid is given for a plot size between 100 sqm and 500 sqm and for plots above 500 sqm, Rs 50,000 maximum aid. Secondly, a 10 per cent rebate is given on the monthly water bill.
(PTI News)
