NGT sends notice to Yogi govt over high levels of groundwater water contamination.
UP, Sambhal: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has sent a notice to UP Pollution Control Board and District Magistrate of Sambhal condemning the high levels of groundwater pollution in the region, forcing children to drink unhygienic water.
The notice was sent citing an earlier plea by retired scientist Dr Chandra Vir Singh, which highlighted the concerns over drinking water of being heavily contaminated.
After sending a notice to the UP government and the concerned authorities, NGT has asked them to file their response before the next date of hearing on the issue.
The environment regulatory board has also claimed that children in the region are forced to drink heavily contaminated groundwater, causing severe health issues.
As per sources, the person who filed the plea, attached photos of locations where children can be seen drinking highly contaminated hand pump water, which not only contains insects but also germs that are not visible to the naked eye.
As per news agency reports, the NGT had earlier issued notices to the state Jal Nigam, asking why penalties should not be imposed on them for their incapability to provide clean drinking water in Ghaziabad, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, Baghpat and Saharanpur districts.
The NGT also took cognisance of the fact that people were forced to drink polluted water due to inaction by the Uttar Pradesh government in resolving the issue.
This is not the first time that the NGT has pulled up the state government, Uttar Pradesh Jal Nigam and the UP Pollution Control Board for putting the lives of innocent children – residing in these villages – at risk.
The fresh notice comes as a big blow to the UP government, which has its work cut out in stabilising the appalling law and order situation in the state.