Seven-member committee of NGT to inspect Tent City

Varanasi: The seven-member joint investigation committee constituted by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) will hold a meeting and conduct a site inspection of the Tent City developed on the sand bed of the Ganga on Tuesday. The regional officer of the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, Varanasi sent a letter to this effect to all the members of the joint committee.
The members include the district magistrate nominated member, ADM (city) Gulab Chand, chief engineer Dinesh Kumar Pandwal on behalf of irrigation department, additional director Dr AK Gupta on behalf of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and senior waste management specialist Rajat Kumar Gupta on behalf of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), Runa Oraon scientist ‘D’ category, on behalf of the Central Pollution Control Board and regional officer of the UP Pollution Control Board SC Shukla and the UP chief wildlife warden.
In the light of the High Court advocate Saurabh Tiwari’s letter and RTI application, information to this effect was given by the regional officer, UPPCB, Varanasi. In compliance with the order issued by the NGT on March 17, the regional officer, in a letter issued on April 28, urged the joint investigation committee to take part in the meeting followed by on-site inspection of the Tent City.
Tushar Goswami, a resident of Varanasi, through advocate Saurabh Tiwari, had filed a petition before the NGT, terming the establishment of the Tent City in the Ganga as contrary to environment and environmental laws. A hearing was held through video conferencing on March 17. The three-member bench headed by NGT chairman, Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel took the matter seriously. The other judicial members were Justice Sudhir Agarwal and environmental expert member Dr A Senthil Vel
According to the advocate Saurabh Tiwari, the NGT had ordered an on-site inspection and investigation of the Tent City within a week. But the action has been started after a delay of one month. Tiwari said that the grievance in this application is against the Tent City project spread in 100 acres area on the riverbed of the Ganga in Varanasi for commercial purpose to the detriment of flora and fauna which also resulted in untreated sewage flowing directly into river Ganga. The project was against ‘The River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities order, 2016’ prohibiting construction in the riverbed. To set up the project, a notification dated 17.03.2020 was issued de-notifying Turtle Wildlife Sanctuary thereby lifting protection for the turtles under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
He said that after hearing, the NGT observed that the allegations, if true, depict serious violations of environmental norms. Before passing further order, the NGT sought a factual report from a seven-member joint committee of NMCG, MoEF&CC, CPCB, chief wildlife warden, Uttar Pradesh, Irrigation and Water Resource Department, Uttar Pradesh, state PCB and district magistrate, Varanasi.
The NMCG and the UPPCB will jointly be the nodal agency for coordination and compliance. The NGT directed that the committee may furnish its report to the Tribunal within two months. The matter has been listed for further consideration on May 26.