At a time when the Delhi government is going all out to stress on the hazards of pollution, turns out that their own house is not in order.
The Delhi government’s Legal Department has written to Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia to take action as environmental laws are being flouted at Players’ Building, the Delhi government’s headquarters.
According to the Legal Department, the Delhi Secretariat building does not have environmental approvals under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
In an e-mail communication to Mr. Sisodia, the Legal Department wrote that a petition has been filed in the National Green Tribunal for closure of the Delhi Secretariat till it obtains all environmental clearances.
“It is accordingly requested that appropriate action may be taken at your end to avoid any future embarrassment,” the communication reads.
A petition was filed in December against the Delhi Secretariat as it doesn’t have clearance from the Delhi Pollution Control Committee. As per the government’s own admission in a Right To Information reply, a copy of which is with The Hindu , the Delhi Secretariat generates one lakh litre per day of sewage along with waste water and it is not treated in-house. Also, there is no composting arrangement for bio-degradable waste in the building.
For rainwater harvesting, rain water is drained in the lake adjoining the Delhi Secretariat. Officials said there are seven generator sets in the building, which do not have clearance from the pollution checking body. The petition was filed in December but later withdrawn by the petitioner on account of certain technicalities.
“We withdrew the petition after the NGT, in an oral communication, told the Legal Department to get clearances. They assured the court that they will comply with the pollution norms,” said petitioner Gaurav Bansal. Delhi government officials said the process has been initiated and application for clearances has been filed. “We will soon obtain all clearances,” added an official.
It generates one lakh litre per day
of sewage and it
is not treated
in-house
