The Yamuna is rising again: How prepared is Delhi for another flood?

A year after the Yamuna inundated large parts of Delhi, the river is again flowing above the danger mark. The immediate threat may be lower this time, but heavy rain in the upper catchment could quickly change the picture, exposing how vulnerable the city’s floodplain still remains.That vulnerability is built into Delhi’s geography. Every monsoon, as September sets in, the city watches the Yamuna closely because even a sharp rise in the river or a sudden surge in upstream discharge can quickly put thousands living and working along the floodplains at risk.The danger mark at the Old Iron Railway Bridge is 205.33 metres, while evacuation of vulnerable residents begins when the river reaches around 206 metres. On September 6, the Yamuna was flowing at 205.59 metres, already slightly above the danger mark.And it is not just the people living along the river who feel the impact.