India, March 26 -- In a determined effort to restore one of India's most iconic rivers, chief minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday unveiled an ambitious roadmap to clean up the Yamuna in her maiden budget. The plan, a cornerstone of the government's environmental agenda, will see the establishment of 40 decentralised sewage treatment plants (DSTPs) along the river's course, with Rs.500 crore allocated for new DSTPs and another Rs.500 crore to upgrade existing ones.

In her budget speech, Gupta said modern machinery such as trash skimmers, weed harvesters, and dredge utilities will be procured with an additional allocation of Rs.40 crore, while a focused Rs.200 crore will be dedicated to the conversion and interception of the Najafgarh drain, a...