In a bid to reclaim wetlands across the country, the Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre and States to respond to a petition asking the authorities to prevent any encroachment or construction in and around identified wetlands.
The petition filed by advocate MK Balakrishnan presented a list of 36 endangered wetlands in the country forming part of 67429 wetlands existing in the country as on date. The bench headed by Chief Justice RM lodha directed the Centre and states to file their response to the specific application moved by petitioner within four weeks.
The Court even wished to know the exact area earmarked as wetlands in the country and asked the Centre to highlight what steps it had taken under the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules 2010 which required it to identify wetlands in the country. Ironically, the counsel representing Centre cut a sorry figure in Court by informing the Court that he was yet to have a look at the Rules.
Advocate for the petitioner Gopal Sankaranarayanan informed the Court that way back in April 2009 the Supreme Court constituted an inter-Ministerial Committee to examine ways and means to conserve water. In five years, the Committee made a “pedestrian” effort despite spending Rs85.8 crore, Sankaranarayanan said, adding that till date it had not identified the endangered wetlands, risk to flora and fauna, and its further classification under lakes, ponds, canals, rivers, etc. The petitioner demanded that the Committee ought to be constituted by environmentalists, lawyers or experts.
It further asked the Court to consider directing states and UTs to make rainwater harvesting mandatory for all residential and commercial construction projects with a strict bar on any permission allowing construction in known wetland areas.