Doodh Ganga pollution: National Green Tribunal forms 5-member panel

Srinagar, Oct 22: The National Green Tribunal has formed a 5-member panel to initiate inquiry and follow up actions on the increasing pollution of the Doodh Ganga river in Kashmir. The panel has been tasked to submit its report before the Tribunal within two months.

In its order issued on 18 October, 2021, the Tribunal, comprising of the  coral Coram Hon’ble Mr. Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, Chairperson Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sudhir Agarwal, Judicial Member Hon’ble Mr. Justice Brijesh Sethi, Judicial Memberhon’ble Dr. Nagin Nanda, Expert Member, stated:

“We direct the authorities to verify the facts and take remedial action in accordance with law. We also constitute a five-member Joint Committee of CPCB, J&K PCC, Deputy Commissioners, Srinagar and Budgam and the Director, Urban Local Bodies, J&K. The State PCB will be the nodal agency for compliance and coordination. The Joint Committee may meet within two weeks and undertake visits to the sites in question. The Committee may look into the water quality in terms of Fecal coliform, quantity of sewage being discharged, solid waste being dumped on the banks and the action plan prepared by the River Rejuvenation Committee (RRC) for J & K constituted as per orders of the Tribunal in OA 673/18. Further action be planned and executed accordingly.”

The NGT action has come on an application filed by activist Raja Muzaffar Bhat, a resident of the area which, along with dozens of habitations in Srinagar suburbs and Budgam areas, is fed by the Dooghganga waters.

Ziraat Times here reproduces parts of the NGT order:

1. Grievance in this application is against failure to prevent discharge of sewage and dumping of solid waste into river Doodh Ganga and Mamath Kull in violation of provisions of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court dated22.02.2017 inter alia in Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti Vs. Union of India1and orders of this Tribunal on the subject.

2. Case set out in the application is that Doodh Ganga is a tributary of the Jhelum River. It originates from Pir Panjaal Mountain and thereafter passing through number of villages and towns up-stream to down-stream like Sogam, Chadoora, Wathora, Kralpora, Bagh-e-Mehtab, Channapora, Natipora, Barzulla, Bulbul Bagh, it merges into Hoker Sar Lake, at Lawaypora, Narbal and eventually meets the Jhelum River. Mamath Kull also originates from Pir Panjal Mountains and after passing through number of villages in Budgam District, enters the Mamath Village which is 1 km away from the stream and thereafter first enters the Hokersar Lake and eventually meets the Jhelum River. Rivers Doodh Ganga and Mamath Kull have been subjected to pollution from pesticides from Apple Orchards, discharge of untreated sewage and dumping of municipal solid wastes from the area falling under Srinagar Municipal Corporation and Municipal Committee of Budgam.

3. Precise submissions been set out in the application are as follows:-

“a) Large quantity of pesticides are flown into the Doodh Ganga River from the Apple Orchards.

2. b)  The Srinagar Municipal Corporation is continuously discharging untreated sewage in river Doodh Ganga from 13 dewatering pumping stations installed at various locations on the banks of river Doodh Ganga.
3. c)  Till date no STPs has been established by the Srinagar Municipal Corporation or any other Government Body in the entire stretch around river Doodh Ganga as a result of which all the untreated sewage from residentials, commercial establishments, shopping malls, butcher houses, poultry shops, laboratories, diagnostic centres and domestic sewage are directly discharged into the river without any scientific treatment.
4. d)  A large number of Municipal Solid Wastes are unscientifically dumped on the banks of river Doodh Ganga and during the present rainy season there is a grave danger of the entire waste to be flowing into the river which is a tributary to River Jhelum.
5. e)  A large amount of municipal solid wastes are being dumped unscientifically on the banks of the Mamath Kull stream by the Municipal Committee of Budgam. There is a grave danger of the entire waste to be flowing into the stream which eventually meets River Jhelum, thereby causing major environmental degradation.”

“As per the inspection report, the analysis of samples collected from Doodhganga at different locations indicate that water in upstream spots i.e. at Sogam, Chadoora and Baghi-e-Mehtab meetthe prescribed permissible limit for ‘Class B’ (Out door BathingOrganised) criteria in terms of analysed physicochemical parameters,whereas in the lower course of river i.e. at Baghat Old Barzullaand Near Tengpora the water quality does not confirm ‘Class B’ Criteria for parameters viz Dissolved Oxygen andBiochemical Oxygen Demand. Comparatively inferior quality in the lower course of river can be attributed to addition of deleterious waste into the water body.

The analysis of samples collected from Mamath Kul indicate that water quality in upstream and downstream meets the prescribedpermissible limit for ‘Class B’ (Out door Bathing Organised) criteria interms of analysed physicochemical parameters. However huge dumps of solid waste were observed along the banks of this stream. The municipal committee Budgam is dumping solid waste on the periphery of the Mamath stream.

Dewatering pump stations installed at various locations on the bank of Doodh Ganga river are still operational and discharged untreated waste water into the River. No concrete steps have been taken by concerned municipal authorities with regard to scientific disposal of solid waste as dumping of solid waste on the banks of Doodh Ganga continues unabated. Municipal Committee Chadoora is dumping the solid waste generated from the Chadoora town on the Bank of Doodh Ganga near Abshar colony. “

6. In view of above material, prima facie it appears that there is continued violation of Water Act to the prejudice of the environment and public health which remains unchecked. Thus, intervention of the Tribunal may be called for. Accordingly, we direct the authorities to verify the facts and take remedial action in accordance with law. We also constitute a five-member Joint Committee of CPCB, J&K PCC, Deputy Commissioners, Srinagar and Budgam and the Director, Urban Local Bodies, J&K. The State PCB will be the nodal agency for compliance and coordination. The Joint Committee may meet within two weeks and undertake visits to the sites in question. The Committee may look into the water quality in terms of Fecal coliform, quantity of sewage being discharged, solid waste being dumped on the banks and the action plan prepared by the River Rejuvenation Committee (RRC) for J & K constituted as per orders of the Tribunal in OA 673/18. Further action be planned and executed accordingly. It may give a factual report to this Tribunal within two months by e-mail at [email protected] preferably in the form of searchable PDF/ OCR Support PDF and not in the form of Image PDF. A copy of the report may also be given to the Secretary, Urban Local Bodies who may file an action taken report in terms of status of compliance oforders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Paryavaran Suraksha (Supra) and orders of this Tribunal dated 21.05.2020 and 21.09.2020 in O.A. 593/2017, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti v. Union of India & Ors., dated 14.12.2020 in O.A. No. 606/2018, Compliance of Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 and other environmental issues and dated 06.12.2019 in OA 673/2018, In re: News item published in “The Hindu”authorized by Shri Jacob Koshy titled “More rivers stretches are nowcritically polluted: CPCB” within one month of the said report.

List for further consideration on 08.03.2022.

A copy of this order be forwarded to the CPCB, J&K PCC, Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar, Deputy Commissioner, Budgam, Directorate of Urban Local Bodies, J&K by e-mail for compliance.

The applicant may serve a set of papers on members of the joint Committee and other affected parties and file affidavit of service within one week.