NGT summons officials from U’khand, UP

New Delhi, November 23

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) today slammed the Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh governments over increasing pollution in the Ganga’s tributary Ramganga and summoned top officials of various departments.

A bench headed by NGT chairperson Swatanter Kumar directed officials from the State Pollution Control Boards and the Jal Nigam to be present on November 26 and apprise it of the status of drains joining the Ramganga.

“You don’t know how many drains join the Ramganga. There is total non-cooperation between the departments. It is sickening. What is the need to have so many departments if they cannot coordinate with each other? Just have one department which does work...we want all your officers here. It is becoming a joke,” the bench said.

The green panel also asked the boards to apprise it whether the industries located on the banks of the Ramganga were directly discharging effluents into the river.

The NGT was hearing a petition filed by Moradabad resident Anil Kumar Singhal, which said 23 big drains in Moradabad and 10 in Bareilly were discharging untreated sewage into the Ramganga.

Advocate Gaurav Bansal, appearing for the petitioner, informed the NGT that several newspaper reports have also spoken of pollution in the Ranganga.

Bansal said closure notices were issued to many industrial units by the Central Pollution Control Board but they started protests and agitations against the notice.

The petitioner had contended that brass factories, situated on the banks of the river, discharged these substances into it.

The Ramganga is one of the major tributaries of the Ganga which originates from Uttarakhand and passes through Moradabad, Bareilly, Badaun, Shahjahanpur and Hardoi cities of Uttar Pradesh located on its banks. — PTI