Rainwater harvesting: NGT directs DJB to inspect buildings
NEW DELHI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Delhi Jal Board to inspect all residential and commercial buildings on plots of 500 sq metres and above in the national capital and apprise it on whether rainwater harvesting systems have been installed there or not.
A bench headed by Justice Jawad Rahim also asked the AAP government and the Delhi Development Authority to ensure that the provisions in the notification on the issue are strictly implemented and file a report within 30 days. The order was passed on Friday.
“The counsel for the DJB has rightly pointed out that there is no direction as yet in making installation of rainwater harvesting (system) compulsory in a building or any other business activity run by an individual or other bodies which own areas more than 500 square metres, in terms of the notification of the government.
“Be that as it may, we have in this regard passed several orders in connected cases and also reiterate that the DJB shall inspect all such areas which are covered under the notification, but have not installed rainwater harvesting system or provisions in their institutions for further order in this regard,” the bench said.
Rule 50 of the Delhi Water and Sewer (Tariff and Metering) Regulations, 2012 makes it mandatory for all buildings on plots of 500 square metres or more to set up rainwater harvesting systems.
In its order, the green panel granted four weeks time to the DJB to prepare a comprehensive plan for groundwater recharge to deal with serious depletion of water levels in the city.
The next hearing on the matter will held on August 9.
Earlier, the tribunal had pulled up the city government and the DJB over illegal borewells and directed the authorities to take speedy action against the violators.
It had asked the Delhi government to act against unauthorised water extraction in the national capital and directed it to seal the illegal borewells.
It had also directed the DJB to submit a list of illegal borewells.
The order had come after the Delhi government told the tribunal that the deputy commissioners of the revenue department could not seal the illegal borewells as they did not receive complete information about them from the DJB, as was directed by the tribunal.
The DJB counsel had opposed the submission and said they had already furnished information about 4,872 borewells to the deputy commissioners.
The tribunal had sought the response of the city government in the matter after taking suo motu cognisance of a media report that “stinking and dirty” water was flowing through supply lines and the borewells were pumping out contaminated water.
Later, it had constituted a committee comprising the secretary (Environment) and representatives from the Central Pollution Control Board, the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, the DJB, the Central Pollution Control Board and all municipal corporations and asked them to submit a complete and comprehensive report.