In the matter of cleaning of the Ganga ghats in Haridwar, the High Court of Uttarakhand has directed that the ghats should be cleaned every three hours. The municipal corporation of Haridwar and the district administration have been ordered to ensure this task with the District Magistrate Deepak Rawat being made the nodal officer.
The High Court division bench of acting chief justice Rajiv Sharma and justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari issued these directions taking cognisance of the report submitted by the court commissioner Chetan Joshi and Nikhil Singhal. The report mentioned that the nullah near Chotiwala restaurant, Kush Ghat, Gau Ghat and other locations were still dirty. The court commissioner’s report stated that various ghats in Haridwar are clean but there is still polythene in such locations.
The court issued these orders while hearing on a public interest litigation filed by Haridwar resident Narendra. The petitioner had stated that the ghats were not being cleaned regularly apart from which polythene waste was also marring the ghats. Apart from ordering the authorities concerned to ensure regular and time-bound cleaning of the ghats, the court had also directed construction of 25 changing rooms for women pilgrims to the ghats and toilets within three months. The case is set for hearing next on October 30.