From now on, borewell operators have to follow a set of guidelines, or else they would have to face severe legal consequences.
After a number of instances of children falling into open borewells dug and left uncovered were reported, the Supreme Court, in a recent ruling, instructed all the State governments to strictly adhere to safety norms.
Subsequently, the officials decided to make it mandatory for borewell operators to register their addresses with the respective Regional Transport Offices (RTO).
The operators should furnish details such as registration numbers of their vehicles which were used to dig borewells and fitness condition of the vehicles.
The operators had to file the number of borewells dug by them every fortnight, and other details such as the depth and the size of the wells.
A joint undertaking by both the operators and the land owners (for whom the borewells were dug) should be filed stating that the works were completed and that they had complied with the procedure.
According to a press release, about 70 operators participated in a meeting held at the Collectorate here on Monday, in which officials from the Transport Department addressed them.
The borewell operators assured them that they would follow the norms in public interest, the release added.
