Noida (The Hawk): Bundelkhand, in Uttar Pradesh, has been experiencing a severe water shortage that has compelled residents to request water trucks, which the villages eventually consume.
Given the water exploitation in the area, Gautam Buddh Nagar is predicted to experience a similar or most likely worse predicament.
In a landmark decision, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered all illegal borewells in Greater Noida Extension to be sealed, and the penalty amount for the illegal extraction of water up to that point had to be recovered, in response to a petition filed by environmental activists Prasoon Pant and Pradeep Dahlia.
The petitioners claimed that at 63 locations in the area, 40 contractors were unlawfully extracting groundwater. In recognition of this, the green organisation imposed interim environmental compensation on the builders equal to 0.5% of their project costs, in addition to future corrective action.
Within a month of the date of the ruling, all of these builders would need to deposit the fine with the relevant district magistrates and the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), failing to do so would result in strong enforcement by the authorities.
The NOC was given a month by the NGT.
According to the directive, if the establishments don't apply for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) within a month, state PCBs will shut them down. Applications submitted may be reviewed in the following month.
On October 7, 2022, a joint committee made up of the District Magistrate, the State PCB, and the Central PCB submitted their report to the NGT on 33 group housing developments, of which 25 were discovered to be illegally collecting water. According to the report, unlicensed borewells should be demolished and groundwater exploitation violators should pay a fee.
When did NGT give the committee the case?
On July 5, 2022, the tribunal established a combined committee comprising the CPCB, State PCB, and District Magistrate of Noida to investigate the facts and obtain a report on the steps taken in the case.
If the committee discovers any offensive material, they were instructed to tell the affected parties about the proceedings.
Additionally, it was instructed to transmit a copy of the report to the parties in question before the next hearing date.
What claims do environmentalists make?
In an interview with IANS, Pradeep Dahlia claimed that the builders in Gautam Buddh Nagar had been overly exploiting water. He added that formerly, the water was found below 20 to 25 metres, but now it isn't even found below 200 metres.
According to Dahlia, the water level has been dropping by 5 metres year.
He said that because of the irreparable harm to the environment, it would be impossible for people to have access to water in the future.
"Instructions have been provided to ensure separate digital metres for the establishments supplying water from local bodies and the ones using ground water, which is not being done at the moment," Dahlia added.
(Inputs from Agencies)
