National Green Tribunal
Pramod Kumar Agarwal vs State Of U.P. & Ors on 12 December, 2022
Item No. 04 (Court No. 2)
BEFORE THE NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL
PRINCIPAL BENCH, NEW DELHI.
(Through Physical Hearing with Hybrid VC Option)
Original Application No. 550/2022
Parmod Kumar Agarwal ...Applicant
Versus
State of U.P. & Ors. ...Respondents
Date of hearing: 12.12.2022
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ARUN KUMAR TYAGI, JUDICIAL MEMBER.
HON'BLE DR. AFROZ AHMAD, EXPERT MEMBER.
Applicant: None.
Respondent: Mr. Pradeep Mishra, Advocate for UPPCB (through VC).
Mr. Vibhav Mishra and Mr. Ekansh Bansal, Advocates for
respondent no. 2-Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad.
Application is registered based on a letter petition received by email.
ORDER
1. Mr. Pramod Kumar Agarwal has sent the present letter petition by email, which is treated and registered as original application, complaining that Nala near Shahid Nagar Metro Station G.T. Road, Sahibabad, Ghaziabad is in horrible condition and is not properly maintained due to which the same gives the foul smell. The applicant has submitted that complaint was made to the concerned Engineers but no action has been taken on the same. The applicant has requested that appropriate action may be taken for covering of the Nala and installation of Sewage Treatment Plant.
2. Vide email dated 06.09.2022, this Tribunal constituted a Joint Committee comprising of representative of State PCB, Commissioner, Municipal Corporation and District Magistrate, Ghaziabad and directed the same to submit factual report within one month.
O. A. No. 550/2022 Pramod Kumar Agarwal Vs. State of U.P. & Ors. -2-
3. In compliance thereof, report of the Joint Committee has been submitted by Mr. Utsav Sharma, Regional Officer, UPPCB vide email dated 09.12.2022. The relevant part of the report is reproduced as under:-
"STATUS REPORT ON BEHALF OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE OF DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION, MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, GHAZIABAD AND UTTAR PRADESH POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD WITH RESPECT TO ORDER DATED 06.09.2022 x x x x x x
4. That, upon receiving nominations for site inspection from the District Administration and Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad, the Joint Committee comprising of Shri Bipin Kumar, Additional District Magistrate (City), Ghaziabad, Shri Yogendra Singh, Executive Engineer (Jal), Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad, Shri Om Prakash, Assistant Engineer (Jal), Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad and Shri Kishan Singh, Assistant Environmental Engineer, UPPCB, Ghaziabad carried out site inspection of the said area on 24.11.2022.
5. That, representative of Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad informed the members of the Joint Committee that the said complainant had approached the Corporation and requested that the drain be covered in front of the group housing society M/s Nipun Saffron Valley , G.T. Road, Ghaziabad where he stays, however same could not be done.
6. That, the Joint Committee tried to contact Shri Parmod Kumar Agarwal, the complainant on his mobile (8882927871) but the call went unanswered. Further, the Committee contacted Shri Nawab Singh, Guard Supervisor of M/s Nipun Saffron Valley who informed that Shri Agarwal was not available in the society.
7. That, during site survey, the Committee observed that the drain, marked as Sahibabad Drain -1 in the records of Municipal Corporation passes near the boundary wall of M/s Nipun Saffron Valley on the right side. The said drain is at a distance of around 20 feet from the boundary wall of the society and residential towers are further 30 feet inside the group housing society. Hutments and temporary households were found established in the 20 feet buffer area between the boundary wall and the drain. O. A. No. 550/2022 Pramod Kumar Agarwal Vs. State of U.P. & Ors.-3-
8. That, the said drain's inception is from a point near 80 feet road in Shahid Nagar and it culminates in Vaishali, Ghaziabad, where it is tapped through a sewage treatment plant. The total length of the said drain as per Corporation's record is 8115 meters, out of which around 7500 meters is in the form of concretized channel.
9. That, before reaching the area in question near M/s Nipun Saffron Valley, mixed effluent from Village Bhopura, Village Pasonda, Village Rajiv Nagar, Shalimar Garden, Ganeshpuri, Janakpuri and Shahid Nagar is received in Sahibabad Drain -1. No authorized or approved industrial area falls in up stream of this point of Sahibabad Drain-1.
10. That, the Sahibabad Drain-1 is in the form of a concrete channel having width of around 30 feet and depth of around 10 feet near the group housing society. Once the drain passes the society it crosses beneath the GT Road. Due to accumulation of municipal waste, stagnancy was observed in the drain at said point which eventually leads to smell in the region.
11. That, the representatives of Municipal Corporation informed that complainant's demand of covering the drain cannot be fulfilled as it would lead to issues in cleaning and regular maintenance of the drain. Further, Hon'ble Tribunal in its various orders has adjudicated against covering of drains. The issue of covering of Sahibabad Drain-1 is also pending before the Hon'ble Tribunal in Original Application 16/2014, Hazi Arif versus State of U.P. and others. In the said matter as well, Municipal Corporation has maintained that no permission has been given to any private party on the said drain since 2012. Same is also incorporated in Functional Plan on Drainage for National Capital Region, approved in the 65th meeting of the Planning Committee of NCR Planning Board.
12. That, the said drain is eventually tapped through sewage treatment plants at Vaishali, Ghaziabad and installation of multiple sewage treatment plants on the same drain is not feasible and not required.
13. That, surface water samples from drain were collected from up-stream as well as down-stream region of M/s Nipun Saffron Valley group housing society and analysed in the Regional Laboratory, Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, Ghaziabad. Results with regards to major parameters have been tabulated hereunder:
S. Down-
Parameters Up-stream
No. stream
1 pH 6.9 7.2
O. A. No. 550/2022 Pramod Kumar Agarwal Vs. State of U.P. & Ors.
-4-
2 Color Blackish Blackish
Total Suspended Solids
3 326 308
(mg/I)
Biological Oxygen
4 108.0 164.0
Demand (mg/I)
Chemical Oxygen
5 280.0 364.0
Demand (mg/I)
Total Coliform
6 4700000 2700000
MPN/100m1
Fecal Coliform
7 3400000 2200000
MPN/100m1
14. That, on basis of observations and findings on site, following recommendations are suggested by the Joint Committee:
a. Covering of drain is not feasible in the said area in view of various directions of Hon'ble National Green Tribunal and Functional Plan on Drainage for National Capital Region, approved in the 65th meeting of the Planning Committee of NCR Planning Board.
b. Since the drain is already tapped, installation of new STP at the said location is not feasible. However, Municipal Corporation along with Jal Nigam (Urban) shall ensure that 100% effluent of said drain is tapped at terminal Sewage Treatment plants either by direct lifting to the dedicated plant or by Interception & Diversion to underutilized plants.
c. Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad along with representatives of land-owning agencies in the catchment of said drain shall ensure that the activities in up-stream region of M/s Nipun Saffron Valley society are regulated as per approved land use only as this will regulate the flow as well as quality of effluent entering the drain.
d. Strict action should be taken against littering into the drains and bar screens be installed at regular intervals for collection and removal of waste finding its way into the drain.
e. Municipal Corporation should consider technical interventions like installation of floating aerators in the stretches of drain where issue of foul smell is persistent despite other measures in place due to stagnancy or other local factors in the drain."
4. In view of the averments made in the application and observations made in the report, we consider it appropriate to have response from (1) the State of Uttar Pradesh (U.P.), through the Chief Secretary, Government of U.P., (2) the Principal Secretary, Urban Development Department, O. A. No. 550/2022 Pramod Kumar Agarwal Vs. State of U.P. & Ors. -5- Government of U.P., (3) the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Ghaziabad, (4) State PCB, and (5) the District Magistrate, Ghaziabad, who stand impleaded as respondents No. 1 to 5. The Registry is directed to prepare and attach memo of parties to the application. Respondents No. 3 and 4 are already appearing before this Tribunal through counsel. Notices be issued to respondents no. 1 to 3.
5. Reply/response by respondents no. 1 to 5 be filed within two months by email at [email protected] preferably in the form of searchable PDF/OCR supported PDF and not in the form of Image PDF.
6. List for further consideration on 14.03.2023.
Arun Kumar Tyagi, JM Dr. Afroz Ahmad, EM December 12, 2022 AVT