Throwing rules to the wind

Despite the National Green Tribunal’s orders on construction dust and open burning of waste, there is little compliance on the ground. Ashok Kumar talks to residents of the Millennium City who are getting fed up with the administration’s apathy in implementing rules that help can curb air pollution

October 30, 2017 01:50 am | Updated 07:45 am IST

 Violations galore: More than a dozen construction material vendors have been operating illegally on Golf Course Extension road in Gurugram by encroaching upon government land.

Violations galore: More than a dozen construction material vendors have been operating illegally on Golf Course Extension road in Gurugram by encroaching upon government land.

“We shifted to Gurugram 10 years ago primarily in pursuit of cleaner air. We were staying in Sector 62, Noida, and our child had developed respiratory issues and was on nebulizer round the year... unfortunately the situation is no better here. Over the last few years, the volume of construction dust and waste seems to have besieged residential areas [sic].”

“I have an 11-year-old who suffers from recurring ear infections, which are worsened due to pollution. This season has not been great for him. In fact, since we moved to Gurugram four years ago, things have been bad [sic].”

“Hi everyone!! I am Ankita Garg, resident of Unitech Escape on Golf Course ext road. This stretch seems under no law enforcement. No traffic policing, every day jams, alarming levels of dust and smog... I follow an app called Airveda for my AQI readings, closest monitoring station is Sohna road… I have taken readings for past few days and the numbers are very high [sic].”

These are some of the messages posted on the WhatsApp group ‘Citizens for Clean Air’ — created by a handful of young mothers and clean air activists in Gurugram post Diwali this year to fight for their right to clean air.

The messages convey the anger, pain and frustration of citizens over deteriorating air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR) and the failure of the administration to curb air pollution.

Worsening air quality

Despite the Supreme Court order banning sale of crackers in NCR this Diwali, pollution levels weren’t much better than previous years with air quality in Delhi and neighbouring towns falling in the “very poor” or “severe” categories.

The worsening situation has prompted citizens to seek more stringent measures, continuous monitoring of air pollution throughout the year and strict implementation of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) orders to keep pollution levels in check.

In one of its orders two years ago, the NGT had pointed out that “it is not only indisputable but in fact the conceded position that there are three prime sources of air pollution in NCT of Delhi and NCR — burning of municipal solid waste in the open; dust generated by construction and allied activities, including sweeping of roads; and finally, vehicular pollution”.

Though pollution due to ever increasing vehicular traffic remains a mammoth task for the authorities, the twin issues of burning of waste and dust are also largely unaddressed due to failure of the local authorities to enforce the NGT’s orders “in letter and spirit”.

Making a mockery of all NGT orders on dust pollution, more than a dozen construction material vendors have been operating illegally on Golf Course Extension road. They have encroached upon government land in Gurugram, with uncovered heaps of sand, gravel, crushed stone and other building materials dotting the roadside on Vatika Chowk-Rajesh Pilot Chowk stretch.

‘Bribes sought’

“It is Haryana Urban Development Authority [HUDA] land. We are operating here illegally. HUDA officials often visit and seek bribe in return for allowing us to operate. We have to grease the palms of policemen as well. Pollution board officials visited on Thursday for the first time this year and directed us to cover the material,” said Jagdish, a vendor who operates right opposite St. Xavier’s High School.

The stretch, which has three prominent schools situated on it, is one of the most polluted areas in the Millennium City.

An NGT order directing builders to raise ‘wind breakers’ on all sides of a plot to ensure no construction dust flies outside the site is also not complied with.

A shopping mall site near Signature Tower in the heart of Gurugram seems to violate all norms with its ‘wind breaker’ comprising a few patches of green cloth hanging at a few points on its boundary.

Similarly, a majority of construction sites, both commercial and residential, along Dwarka Expressway also violate NGT rules.

₹1 crore collected in fines

Jai Bhagwan, Regional Officer (North Gurugram), Haryana State Pollution Control Board, claimed that 64 construction sites were fined for around 200 violations of NGT orders over the past two years, and more than ₹1 crore has been collected in penalties.

He said the Department had recently directed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to remove mounds of sand from its construction sites on the Expressway and sprinkle water on loose soil, and issued a challan to an under-construction Judicial Complex site near Rajiv Chowk.

But the question remains whether this action is enough for a rapidly urbanising city like Gurugram with hundreds of construction sites and violations galore.

Even small-scale construction activity, mostly in residential areas, goes unchecked due to multiplicity of authority.

“Several construction sites in Sector 46 are flouting norms and building materials keeps lying on the road without being covered. But I don’t know who to complain to. Is it the responsibility of the Pollution Department, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram [MCG], the HUDA or the Department of Town and Country Planning? It would be a good idea to have a dedicated control room to report all these violations,” said Vijay Deshwal, a resident of Sector 46, which falls under the jurisdiction of the MCG.

Highlighting the state of affairs even in posh licensed colonies, Anshul Kapoor, wrote on the Citizens for Clean Air WhatsApp group: “...we have construction sites within Nirvana and at all times we can see construction material lying on the road...[sic].”

Violations in the Capital

Violation of dust pollution norms abound in Delhi too.

The under-construction Delhi government hospital site near Dwarka Sector 10 metro station has half-covered piles of rubble spilling onto the pavement.

Fences erected to keep the wind from blowing dust out on the street only cover the construction rubble partially.

Enormous mounds of dirt on empty lots or on the roadside are a common sight.

“The air here is hazy, especially during evenings after they wrap up construction work. With the winter coming, the situation will only worsen,” said Sangeeta Upadhyay, a resident of Gayatri Apartments in Dwarka Sector 10.

On enforcement front, little seems to have been done by the three civic bodies in Delhi.

In 2017 so far, the North Delhi Municipal Corporation has issued just 34 fines for dust pollution by under-construction buildings. The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) has issued 28 challans, while the East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) has fined 21 sites for violating dust pollution norms.

According to an estimate, Delhi generates at least 5,000 tonnes of construction debris per day. However, it only has two processing plants that can deal with about 25% of the total construction waste generated.

Only the more visible pieces like concrete blocks, discarded tiles and hardware get into these plants, while the rest is dumped everywhere, adding to dust pollution.

According to experts, Delhi has developed an amazing appetite for brick and mortar. The city is an unending construction project with more roads, flyovers, pavements, metro lines, shopping malls, and offices coming up every day.

Sweeping of roads

In residential neighbourhoods, if it is not a single storey being converted into a multi-storey ‘builder’ flat, there is always an extra room or an extra floor being added somewhere.

Cleaning of roads is yet another major source of dust pollution, even in Gurugram.

Though the MCG has four mechanical sweeping machines to clean city roads, the Pollution Department had written to the MCG and the HUDA to arrange more such machines to prevent dust pollution.

“We even offered financial assistance to the two agencies but they are yet to respond. We wrote to them four months ago,” claimed Mr. Bhagwan.

The NGT also banned open burning of waste in NCR two years ago, and similar orders were issued by the MCG and the HUDA, but illegal dumping and burning of waste is a common sight.

Helpless residents

The problem becomes worse during Diwali as scrap markets in Chakarpur and Nathupur village burn tyres, tubes and plastic.

“We have been complaining about pollution due to garbage burning for the past two years. I have called the police and the MCG several times but they are unable to catch the culprits. We even forced the MCG to dig a pit in front of the place near the garbage dump to stop dumping but in vain,” said Shalini Kapoor, a resident of Vatika City in Sector 49.

Conceding their failure to curb the menace of waste burning, Sudhir Chauhan, Senior Town Planner, MCG, said the agency receives complaints and even videos on MCG’s Facebook page, WhatsApp number and helpline, but violators are rarely caught.

“With increase in instances of burning of waste in winter, we have directed our officials to keep vigil on the ground to catch and fine violators on the spot,” said Mr. Chauhan, who is the Nodal Officer for all complaints related to waste burning in Gurugram.

He claimed that more than ₹5 lakh in fines was imposed for burning of waste in Gurugram over the past one year alone. He, however, refused to share the details on the number of challans issued.

Enforcement problem

Over the years, the National Green Tribunal has passed several orders to curb dust pollution and open burning of waste

December 2014

•No government, authority, contractor, builder or person is permitted to store/dump construction material or debris on metalled road

•All State Pollution Control Boards and Environment Departments concerned are directed to maintain strict vigil and supervise all stone crushers to ensure they operate only after consent from the Board

•All trucks or vehicles used for construction purposes and those carrying construction materials like cement and sand should be fully covered

•All authorities and corporations in the National Capital Region  should ensure there is no burning of materials at landfill sites

November 2016

•If a builder violates the law and contributes to undue pollution of ambient air, he has to bear the burden of all consequences in terms of remedial/restorative liabilities as well as consequential losses suffered due to the adverse impacts

Vox pop

Nandini Gulati, South City-I, Gurugram : " My eyes have been burning since Diwali and my nose has been blocked for days. My mother has been feeling listless and has a constant headache. I am seriously considering leaving this city. It [pollution] is an issue of grave concern".

Rajeev Agrawal, Palm Drive, Sector 56, Gurugram: " I returned to India after two years in Singapore. I was hopeful that quality of life would have improved under the new government. However, things seem to have gone from bad to worse. The roads are in a bad shape, there is debris everywhere and the city turns into a pond after light showers. My daughter has already had two visits to the doctor. Even the doctor was suffering from throat infection due to poor air quality."

Shona Chatterji,   Silver Oaks, Gurugram:" There are citizens who have been fighting to curb air pollution for years. They have sent letters, met officials and administrators, and gone through proper channels. Despite that nothing has been done. The air around us is only getting worse. We don’t want excuses anymore. We will no longer be placated by platitudes. We want action, and we want it now."

Sameera Satija, Founder of Hara Bhara Gurugram:" Why do authorities swing into action only after an emergency situation arises? Had pollutants such as road and construction dust, and open burning of waste been kept in check throughout the year, this emergency situation would not have come. I agree that the city is developing and construction activities are a part of that, but not at the cost of the health of eldersand children."

( With inputs from Soumya Pillai and Jatin Anand )

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