India, July 21 -- The Delhi government plans to double the water storage capacity of the Wazirabad barrage in north Delhi by dredging the Yamuna riverbed after the monsoon, government officials said on Sunday.

Delhi water minister Parvesh Verma said fresh silt and mud in the river from heavy rains upstream would have complicated the project during the monsoon. The government will likely earn Rs.27 crore revenue from the excavated material, he added.

"The previous government used to pay money to contractors for dredging but we will earn revenue from the exercise. We will dredge the river after the monsoon," Verma said.

The Wazirabad pondage is Delhi's primary holding area for water from the Yamuna. In April, the government had called te...