NGT forms panel for remedial action

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, March 21

In a petition filed by four residents against the burning of garbage at the wholesale vegetable market at Bahadur Ke Road, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has formed a joint committee comprising of the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), the District Magistrate and Municipal Commissioner to take remedial action regarding the practice within two months, after following the due process of law.

Tribunal seeks ATR on axed trees

• Keeping in view the environmental damage due to 'illegal' axing of trees in Ludhiana, a petition had been filed by Kuldeep Singh Khaira, Kapil Dev Arora, Amandeep Singh Bains and Col Jasjit Singh Gill before the NGT. In the application against illegal axing of trees, they had highlighted the failure of the state authorities to take remedial measures.

The PPCB will be the nodal agency for coordination and compliance of the remedial action. The committee is expected to meet within two weeks, take stock of the situation and plan the proper course of action. The tribunal has sought an action-taken report from the panel within two months.

Residents Kapil Arora, Gagnish Khurana, Mohit Jain and Vikas Arora had moved the NGT against burning of garbage at the market. They alleged that around 10 MT of garbage was being generated on a daily basis in the vegetable mandi but instead of following environment-related laws, the garbage was being repeatedly put on fire by the Mandi Board and despite prohibitory letters being issued by the MC multiple number of times, the officials had failed to handle the garbage in a scientific manner.