The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday banned any construction on a beach in Puri in Odisha after it was informed that a sewage line has been built there by the city’s civic agency.
In another hearing NGT directed the Ministries of Environment, Water Resources and Human Resource Development to file their replies to a plea seeking a uniform policy with regard to immersion of idols in rivers and other water bodies during some religious events.
A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar expressed surprise over the Puri municipality that has laid down a sewage line on the beach saying, “This could lead to a great disaster. We restrain any party or authority from carrying out any construction on sea beach/buffer zone at Puri.”
It also directed the city municipality to show how the sewage of the entire city is collected, handled and treated and whether there is any proposal to set up a sewage treatment plant there. It also sought a layout of the drainage system there.
The Tribunal issued the directions after observing that the panel, set up by it to monitor the air and water pollution in the city, in its interim report has not dealt with the issue of sewage system of Puri and directed the committee to submit its final report by February 3, 2014.
Hearing another petition that sought “uniform, practical, pragmatic and well-accepted standard operating procedure” for immersion of idols across the country, the same bench gave two weeks to the three aforesaid Ministries to file their responses listing the next hearing on January 15, 2014.
The petitioner Subhas Dutta told the Tribunal, “lakhs of idols are immersed in the rivers and water bodies in the country every year and they are left there to decompose, resulting in damage to the water body and the environment.” He pointed to an Allahabad High Court order by which there is complete ban on immersion of idols in the Ganga. He further questioned how then it can be allowed in West Bengal or other parts of the country.