The 2023 MUM Workshop session included distinguished academics from IIT Roorkee, IIT Madras, XIM University, and environmental policy organizations, debating critical issues in river hydrology, pollution control, sediment management, and ecological conservation. Global and local case studies informed the discussion, such as the targeted dredging of the Hudson River, Bangladesh’s Environmental Personhood approach, and river restoration efforts in India.
1. The Dredging Debate
Experts pointed out that dredging is not a single solution to revive Yamuna. Targeted dredging will improve flow in sediment-prone areas, but over-intervention upsets hydrology, biodiversity, and floodplain stability. Case studies from Goa’s River Sal and the Pripyat River near Chernobyl underlined the long-term ecological hazard of large-scale dredging. The debate also touched upon options such as silt management by bund construction and ecological restoration measures.
2. Restoration of Water Flow and Pollution Control
The drastic water depletion in the Yamuna had been attributed to 97% diversion to irrigation and urban use, with a grossly polluted riverbed as a result. Professionals advocated the establishment of environmental flow standards that would provide adequate volume of water for natural self-purification. Recommendations were:
3. Encroachment and Riverfront Sustainable Strategies
The workshop condemned unplanned urbanization along Yamuna’s floodplains, which leads to increased pollution and water stagnation problems. Riverfront models like Sabarmati and Mahanadi were evaluated for possible risks and gains. Experts suggested:
4. Interdisciplinary River Basin Management
Another constant was the call for a multi-stakeholder process, marrying scientific, legal, and social paradigms. Proposals involved:
The MUM Workshop remains a knowledge hub, connecting scientific know-how and practical policy options for the sustainable future of the Yamuna.
To bring water back in Yamuna, we have taken the following quotes/suggestions from the seminars we have conducted earlier: Now, desilting process is very simple process, Indian capability is there, there are so many Indian companies, they are engaged in desilting which we have also seen if you go to Bangalore most of the ponds have been desilted, even those good lakes, now it has been recharged and it is doable, it is not so difficult, I think. Now, then the issue was that day when we are discussing the what to do with those you know once we do the dredging the materials which we are taking out from the river, I said the, these are the most fertile soil and it can be, we can use it for many purposes. So, that is not a very big issue, even government can earn some money from that also. So, one is dredging, the second thing is that we can think of constructing some good bunds like if you look at the river Mahanadi
Maj Gen RC Padhi (Retd.)
I think the municipal authorities of Delhi should actually take note of. This is a case of the Upper Hudson in New York. With the involvement of GE, more than 3 lakh pounds of polychlorinated biphenyls were removed. And this is targeted removal.
Dr. R. Gopichandran
My point is- a suitable study should be carried out whether the dredging that will enhance the carrying capacity of the Yamuna and how much that will be sustainable.
Prof. Zulfiqar Ahmed, IIT Roorkee
So, what at most we can do is, we can look for some specific sites wherein this solid waste that has been dumped which are not belonging to the river can be targeted and removed at specific places.
Dr. Sutapa Pati, XIM University
Dredging is an aggressive design. It’s like taking Crocin in fever. In an extreme case, we can take certain operative measures urgently.
Pushkar Priyadarshi, LT IDPL Limited
So, we have to do a major dredging for two reasons. One is that of course it will have flood control. Apart from that, I firmly believe that the river Yamuna bed is disturbed thoroughly because of these chemical effluents coming into it. So, if you do dredging, it will balance its aquatic ecosystem as well. And it will certainly improve aquatic life and your biodiversity in that area. Now the problem with dredging is that where the sediments will go. The sediments which you are taking out has to be disposed off as per the law of land.
Prof. Elango Lakshmanan, IIT Madras
We need to maintain environmental flow. If the environmental flow is affected due to siltation at a targeted locations, we can go in for dredging. To go for dredging, as discussed, we need to have what was the topography previously. This is available. The engineered structures such as bridges, barrages, can provide what were the previous topography levels. So, if the level of the riverbed has gone above that, at targeted places we can do limited dredging.
We care about you and the safety of your contributions!
© Copyright 2025, MCWR All Rights Reserved
