New Delhi, Sept. 18 -- An assessment by the Delhi government found that Shahdara drain, which is responsible for one of the largest pollutant inflows into the Yamuna, is receiving a substantial amount of untreated effluents from Loni and Ghaziabad in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, officials of the Delhi government said. A senior government functionary said the pollution load on the Yamuna and its sources are being assessed to prepare a comprehensive action plan. "Shahdara drain is the second biggest pollution contributor to the Yamuna after the Najafgarh drain. Just like Najafgarh drain is getting untreated wastewater from Haryana, the Shahdara drain has also been found to have substantial industrial and domestic untreated wastewater from Ghaziabad and Loni. We will soon be writing to the UP authorities on this matter," the official said. The Shahdara drain is a 57-kilometre-long open drain in east Delhi that carries untreated sewage, industrial effluents, and solid waste into the Yamuna. The Yamuna water quality has been found to be at its worst after the point where the Shahdara drain converges into it. Official aware of the project said that the Shahdara drain is getting a massive inflow of wastewater from the Sahibabad, Indirapuri, Banthala and Loni drains in neighbouring states. "They are carrying lots of industrial waste from Loni and Sahibabad industrial township and the Loni drain is also discharging sewage into the Shahdara drain. After meeting the Shahdara drain, all this material ultimately meets the Yamuna," the official said. A UP government official responsible for the area refuted the findings, but did not elaborate further....