The Delhi government on Sunday organised a cleanliness drive across 28 ghats and other locations as part of the ‘Yamuna Riverbank Cleanliness Campaign 2026’. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta led the drive at Geeta Colony ghat, where she said that public participation was essential to cleaning the river.

The Chief Minister said that the Yamuna was not merely a river but a source of faith, culture and life for crores of people. She added that if people continued to pollute the Yamuna, the purpose of “any form of worship” could not truly be fulfilled.

Ms. Gupta urged people not to throw waste, plastic, religious offerings, flowers, garlands, idols or other materials into the river. She said that a large quantity of broken idols, garments used for deities, worship materials wrapped in plastic and other waste had been removed from the riverbanks during the drive, underscoring the need for changes in public habits and behaviour.

She said that maintaining the river’s cleanliness was a shared responsibility, requiring both the government and society to work together.

CM takes the lead

At around 7.30 a.m. at Geeta Colony ghat, where the Chief Minister was expected to arrive, a crowd of around 200 people had gathered. The gathering included workers cleaning the river, students, members of NGOs involved in Yamuna conservation and government officials. The group had begun cleaning before Ms. Gupta arrived.

Volunteers from ‘Friends of Yamuna’, an NGO, said they had been conducting cleanliness drives for almost six years. They added that more young people had begun participating recently and expressed hope that awareness would increase following the government’s involvement.

“If we keep doing this for a while, eventually it will show improvement,” said a volunteer.

Addressing the volunteers, Ms. Gupta called for active participation, sustained efforts and greater involvement of young people in cleaning the river.

Drive to continue

Ms. Gupta said the campaign would not be limited to a single day and that the Delhi government would continue to organise similar drives regularly at various locations, inviting citizens to participate from time to time.

However, the government did not announce any specific schedule for future drives.

Expressing confidence in the initiative, the Chief Minister said that through public participation and sustained action, Delhi residents would one day witness the Yamuna in its clean, pristine and uninterrupted form.

She added that several projects related to Yamuna rejuvenation and water management were being fast-tracked, with projects worth more than ₹1,000 crore already approved.

Opposition targets the BJP

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government over the condition of the Yamuna, claiming that cleaning and beautifying its banks would not address pollution in the river.

AAP Burari MLA Sanjeev Jha said the BJP had promised to clean the Yamuna after winning the Delhi Assembly election last year, not merely its banks.

“Despite the government’s extensive publicity around its Yamuna clean-up efforts after coming to power, the river remains polluted and its water remains black even after one-and-a-half years in office. When the BJP came to power after winning the elections, television channels were flooded with claims that work was being carried out on a ‘war footing’. But look at the reality. Look at the water of Maa Yamuna and see how black, polluted and filthy it is,” Mr. Jha said.

Delhi Congress chief Devender Yadav alleged that the BJP government was preoccupied with token events and publicity-driven politics rather than actually cleaning the Yamuna.

“The government has completely failed to stop the flow of dirty drains, sewage and pollutants into the river. Foam, filth and polluted water remain clearly visible in many stretches of the Yamuna,” he said.

(With inputs from Anisha Jyotirmayee)