The tribunal has asked UP chief secretary to immediately act on the mismanaged solid waste from the pilgrimage
Both the governments, at the Centre and Uttar Pradesh, claimed to have organised a ‘swachh’ — clean — Kumbh in the winter of 2018-19, but the National Green Tribunal seems to differ. In fact, the quasi judicial body rang alarm bells on Aprill 22, 2019 about host city Allahabad being on the the verge of an epidemic.
The green bench flagged poor solid waste management during the months-long religious gathering on the Ganga and asked the state chief secretary to appear before it on April 26, 2019.
Quoting the chief secretary of the state, the NGT said 60,000 metric tonnes (mt) of solid waste had been collected at Baswar Solid Waste Treatment Plant which was lying untreated. Of this, 18,000 mt was generated in Kumbh, but the plant was not operational since September 2018.
While predicting a rise in case of acute diarrhoea, enteric fever, viral hepatitiss and cholera, the NGT has said responsibility needs to be fixed so an epidemic can be prevented.
Also, the tribunal pointed out that groundwater too has been polluted. “Dirty water from toilets was being collected in kutcha pits. The base of the soak pits had not been lined and the dirty water could percolate underground,” read the order.
The tribunal had appointed a committee to see to it that the Ganga does not suffer any damage during the Kumbh. The order of the NGT has come based on the committee’s report.
The experts are livid. “This is just the glimpse of the flip side of the optics that was the recent Ardh Kumbh. What the NGT committee has reported is shameful and a case of dangerous neglect. The regular monitoring by the NGT and its desire to fix the responsibility for inaction or non-cooperation is a welcome move. Hopefully exemplary actions would follow this,” said Manoj Mishra of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan.
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