The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has slammed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) over the poor condition of the Purana Quila lake here and summoned its senior official to explain why it had not been cleaned despite its direction.
A Bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar noted that the lake, which was earlier a place of tourist attraction, was covered with moss and had become a dumping ground.
‘Directions not followed’
The green panel took exception to non-compliance of its May 19 order to expeditiously restore all water bodies in the city. It asked the ASI official to appear before it and explain why silt, sand and other debris had not been removed from the lake despite its direction.
“This lake was meant for tourism purposes. Half of the lake area is sunk in the mosses. The lake is totally unclean, unhygienic and has become a dumping ground. We direct the senior ASI official to be present before the Tribunal on September 5 and explain why the directions had not been followed,” the Bench said.
The Tribunal had earlier directed the city government to rejuvenate water bodies so that they became a source of natural beauty for the public.
The green panel had also approved a proposal put forward by the Delhi Jal Board to revive the Rajokri water body in south-west Delhi. However, it had made it clear that there should be no use of “concrete, cement or brick”.
‘Stop open defecation’
The NGT had said that a similar approach should be adopted by all public authorities including the Delhi Development Authority and municipal corporations to ensure that the water bodies within their jurisdictions were not used for open defecation. The Tribunal had recently banned open defecation and dumping of waste on the Yamuna floodplains and announced a fine of ₹5,000 for those who violated the order.