Delhi eyes structural reset of water network with new master plan

The Government of Delhi is preparing a Water Master Plan aimed at modernising the capital’s ageing drinking water distribution network and addressing persistent problems of leakage, contamination and uneven supply, Times of India reported.

Under the proposed framework, the city’s water distribution system will be reorganised into nine operational zones, each centred around a major water treatment plant (WTP) that will function as a command hub for managing supply infrastructure, upgrading treatment capabilities and repairing or relaying pipelines where needed.

“For the first time, we are preparing Water Master Plan of Delhi as we want to make long-term and future-ready plans to fix the structural legacy problems that the water production and supply system of Delhi currently faces,” water minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma said.


“We have engaged an agency that will study all major aspects of water supply and production, including sources of water, future requirements and water pipeline maintenance,” Verma added. “In the next one year, we will engage major private players with relevant experience through open tenders for the management of Command Centres. In future, these companies will be given each of the zones, and they will be responsible for managing all the major operations in those areas.”

Officials said much of Delhi’s water network was laid more than four decades ago, and over half of the pipelines are 20 years old or older. Years of corrosion, repeated repairs and rising demand from a growing population have weakened the system, often resulting in leakages, contamination and significant water losses before supply reaches households.

“The move is aimed at fixing challenges such as leakages, contamination and low water pressure that many neighbourhoods continue to face, which affects the quality of water as well as the supply system,” Verma said.

The plan envisages integrating supply operations and household connections with command centres, enabling real-time monitoring of the distribution network. Consultants will be appointed for each zone to assess existing infrastructure, identify pipelines that need replacement and determine areas requiring new connections. Each command centre will oversee water infrastructure across clusters of 10–15 assembly constituencies, coordinating distribution, monitoring supply levels and tracking leakages.

Work has already begun in the command area served by the Chandrawal WTP, where the project involves replacing nearly 1,044 km of ageing pipelines, constructing 12 underground reservoirs and refurbishing nine storage facilities. The plan also includes creating 147 district metered areas to monitor water flow and detect leaks, with the redesigned network expected to maintain water pressure of around 22 metres even at the farthest points.

Similar upgrades are planned for areas supplied by the Wazirabad, Haiderpur, Nangloi, Okhla, Dwarka, Bawana, Bhagirathi and Sonia Vihar treatment plants. Preliminary project reports have been prepared for some zones, including the area served by the Wazirabad WTP, while detailed project reports for the west and southwest regions are being developed.

Delhi currently produces 900–1,000 million gallons per day (MGD) of water against a demand of around 1,200 MGD, which typically rises during summer. Officials said the long-term goal of the master plan is to digitally map and monitor the entire water network zone by zone, reduce losses and ensure more reliable supply across the city. (With inputs from TOI)