Bengaluru: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Monday directed Mantri Techzone and Core Mind Software and Services to file a compliance report on its directions passed on May 4, 2016.
Refusing to move the case to the Karnataka High Court as impleaded by Mr Kupendra Reddy, the NGT directed him to file his application again.
On February 22, the NGT had issued a suo motu show-cause notice to various state authorities, including the KSPCB, KLCDA, BDA, BWSSB and CPCB, asking as to why they should not be prosecuted under the Environment Protection Act. The state authorities who have not filed their affidavits have been given two weeks to do so.
The Namma Bengaluru Foundation had impleaded into the Bellandur Lake fire case on February 22. The NBF brought to the notice of the NGT that the fire incident was not the first or only incident that the lake had witnessed, but there have been numerous incidents of major or minor fire because of burning of solid municipal waste and garbage in the lake catchment. The fire department has been regularly dousing the fire near the lake bed. These incidents of garbage burning and fire have affected the air quality of the region, but the authorities appear to have turned a blind eye towards the environment.
The present situation of the lake is alarming and immediate remedial measures are required to save the dying lake as suggested in the NBF’s SaveBellandur Action Plan Report and Karnataka government’s expert committee report. There is no proper quantification of actual amount of treated or untreated sewage entering the lake and all estimates are based on old data.
Mr Sridhar Pabbisetty, CEO, Namma Bengaluru Foundation, said, “We do hope that by April 12, we will see enough action by the Karnataka government to reduce the suffering of the residents next to Bellandur and Varthur Lakes by committing to a timeline to all the recommendations of the Expert Committee.”
Directions by NGT on May 4, 2016
- The Lake Development Authority was directed to demolish all constructions, including boundary walls, falling in the buffer zone in respect of all water bodies/lakes of Bengaluru.
- The Tribunal had also directed that all sewage treatment plants, whether government or privately owned, should meet the revised standards notified by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB)/Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF).
- BWSSB was directed to separately consider the water requirements during construction and operation phases.
- It was mandated that only treated sewage water can be used for construction purposes and this condition was directed to be included in the Environmental Clearance (EC).
- Karnataka was directed to submit a proposal to MoEF for demarcation of wetlands within four weeks and MoEF was directed to consider the same within four weeks thereafter.
- The NGT had directed the project proponents to remove the debris or construction material dumped into the Rajakaluves or on their banks and on the buffer zone of wetlands within four weeks.
