Plea in NGT to ban dumping of fly ash in MP water bodies

NEW DELHI: A plea seeking directions to restrain thermal power plants in Madhya Pradesh’s Singrauli and Uttar Pradesh’s Sonebhadra from dumping fly ash, toxic residue and industrial waste in the Rihand reservoir and other water bodies was filed in the National Green Tribunal on Thursday.

The plea filed by advocate Ashwani Kumar Dubey referred to an incident on October 6, 2019, in which the ash dyke of NTPC Vindhyachal Super Thermal Power Station in Singrauli was breached due to the “negligent act” of the power project and more than 35 lakh metric tonnes of fly ash got into the Govind Vallabh Pant Sagar ‘Rihand Reservoir, which is the only source of potable water for the people of Singrauli and Sonebhadra districts. The reservoir’s water was contaminated, making it unfit for drinking, the plea said.

“Due to the breach, fly ash destroyed agricultural land and many cattle have also gone missing. That due to the collapse of ash dyke, as per the primary finding of Pollution Control Board, there has been huge loss to the environment.

“The damage has been caused to the environment in various contexts and the agricultural land have become unfertile. The mercury is in the air, water and soil of the Singrauli area is more than the prescribed limit. The adverse impact of the pollution is visible in the blood, hair, nails, legs, hands and body of the people living there,” the plea filed before the NGT said. PTI