NGT forms high-level committee to deal with pollution in Yamuna river

The National Green Tribunal on Monday formed a high-level committee to deal with the issue of pollution in Yamuna river.

A bench comprising its chairperson Justice A K Goel said substantial work remains unexecuted in terms of identified steps for the rejuvenation of Yamuna, and there is still a huge gap between the generation of sewage and available treatment facilities.

The bench also comprising judicial members Justice Sudhir Agarwal and Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi along with expert members A Senthil Vel and Afroz Ahmad said the earlier directions of the tribunal regarding pollution of river Yamuna were not complied with.

 

"The estimated gap is said to be 194.5 million gallons per day (MGD) of sewage, interception and diversion of about 147 drains (connected to Najafgarh and Shahdra drains) and other small drains joining bigger drains remains (pending) and wastewater from 1,799 unauthorized colonies and 630 JJ clusters is reportedly going into the Yamuna," the bench said.

Other incomplete works include the riverfront development projects by DDA and desilting or desludging of drains, the bench said.

It noted that according to the Delhi Pollution Control Committee's data, the water quality of river Yamuna showed "high levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD)" and "innumerable numbers of faecal coliform."

"Having multiple authorities in Delhi may be one of the reasons for not achieving success so far. There appears to be a lack of ownership and accountability. A huge amount has already been spent without desired results and judicial oversight has continued for almost 29 years," the green panel said.

DPCC did not take coercive measures against erring industries or local authorities who "rampantly" continued to discharge waste in river Yamuna and drains, the tribunal said.

"There appears to be reluctance in collecting necessary charges required for remedial measures and adopting an effective methodology for prevention of pollution and availability of funds may be an excuse for not preventing pollution," the tribunal said.

It said beautification of floodplain zones and dense plantations could add great value to the aesthetics of the national capital.

"A huge amount of public money has been already spent without much results and without accountability, as noted by the Supreme Court in the context of Yamuna and further expenditure has to be incurred with a sense of responsibility, ensuring tangible results," the tribunal said.

The green panel said there was a need to plant trees on the flood plains of the river and buffer zones of the drains, besides undertaking engineering, structural and biological measures for a comprehensive catchment area treatment plan.

"There is also a need to consider utilisation of treated sewage water for agriculture or other purposes, discouraging the use of chemical fertilizer and insecticides, to the extent viable and for maintaining and restoring the ecological integrity of river Yamuna, eco-technology may be used," it said.

"We constitute a high-level Committee (HLC) of authorities concerned in Delhi where pollution of Yamuna is higher (about 75%), compared to other river basin states. We request the Lieutenant Governor to head the committee," the tribunal said.

Other committee members would include the chief secretary, secretaries of various Delhi government departments, CEO of Delhi Jal Board, DDA officials, top officials of the Union ministries of Agriculture, Jal Shakti and Environment, chairman of the Central Pollution Control Board and director general of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).

The committee has to meet physically within one week and take stock of the situation with regard to the directions of the tribunal, the extent of compliance, proposed remedial action, sources of funding, accountability for past failures and methodology for execution of the projects and timelines, the tribunal said.

"The committee may explore provision for separate channels for carriage of sewage instead of mixing the same with stormwater," the bench said adding, "the committee may ensure that de-sludged or dredged material is disposed of as per norms at the earliest, preventing re-entry in the river and damage to the flood plains.

The success of the committee will be viewed by the outcome in terms of the reduction of pollution and the targets of the committee should be measurable and identifiable, the tribunal said.

The committee had to submit its first report by January 31, the tribunal said.

The NGT was hearing a plea on the issue of pollution of river Yamuna claiming there was a continuous failure of the authorities concerned in taking adequate remedial measures despite specific orders by the Supreme Court and the NGT.