Kejriwal writes to Amit Shah about rising Yamuna water level

NEW DELHI: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah urging the Centre to intervene as the water level of the Yamuna reached 207.55 meters, breaking a previous record set in 1978.

In his letter, Kejriwal said that the capital was going to host G20 Summit in the coming days, and the news of flood in the national capitalwould bring a bad name to the entire nation.

Kejriwal wrote the water level has been consistently rising due to the water released from the Hathnikund Barrage located in Haryana.

"I humbly request you, if possible, to release the water from the Hathnikund Barrage at a limited pace so that the water level in the Yamuna river in Delhi does not increase further," his letter read.

Kejriwal said that the Central Water Commission has predicted that the water level can cross 207.72 meter mark on Wednesday night which was a matter of great concern.

"The water level in Yamuna river has already reached to 207.55 meters which broke the records of 45 years. At 1 p.m. this afternoon, the water level of the Yamuna river in Delhi reached 207.55 meters. This level is much higher than the danger mark (205.33 meters).

"Prior to this, the Yamuna river had mostly reached a level of 197.49 meters in 1978, which was a significant flood situation in Delhi. With the water level at 207.55 meters, the Yamuna river can potentially experience floods at any time," Kejriwal added in his letter.