Dheerpur Wetland Restoration Project stuck in silt

The Dheerpur Wetland Restoration Project, launched with much fanfare two years ago, has not made much progress in the past one year with the Delhi Development Authority delaying desilting of water bodies.
A management agreement was signed between Ambedkar University Delhi (AUD) and the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) in June 2015 to restore an area of 25.38 hectares (around 60 acres) adjacent to the university's upcoming campus at Dheerpur as urban wetlands.
Speaking to PTI, a board member of the project seeking anonymity, said, "AUD submitted a detailed plan for desilting the water bodies. It is pending with the DDA for over a year now. Delay on the DDA's part is what is causing problems for the project."

According to the agreement, AUD is supposed to offer technical support including plantation work, introduction of species among others, whereas funding research, restoration work, civil work and desilting is to be done by DDA.
"Baseline monitoring is completed. AUD has done plantation work, introduction of species to the possible extent. Now the point is the university can't progress too far without the DDA desilting the wetland," the official said, adding that intervention so far by AUD have attracted a large number of birds to the site.
However, R C Jain, a DDA assistant engineer (North) who handles the ground operations, said, "There is no water in the wetland now, there is no question of desilting right now. However, the file is under process and it takes time for the works to start."

The then DDA Vice chairman, Balvinder Kumar, who inaugurated the project had said it was a great initiative which other universities in the country need to emulate.

"Some birds that have started visiting the site are wagtails, pipits, warblers, spotbilled ducks, and weaver (permanent residents of wetlands)," the board member said.
The Dheerpur wetland management board, formed after the signing of the agreement, has representatives from directorate of higher education of the Delhi government, Delhi University Vice Chancellor, members from DDA, members from AUD and other experts.
The board has met twice so far.
"Though there have been efforts by DDA, much of it is incomplete including building gates, boundary and removing encroachment," the official said.

If completed, the wetland park would provide hydrological, regulatory, cultural and aesthetic benefits to the people in the nearby areas such as Mukherjee Nagar, Nirankari Colony and Gandhi Vihar and to the university campus itself.