New Delhi [India], March 15 (ANI): Delhi Lieutenant General VK Saxena on Tuesday chaired the third assembly of the High-Level Committee constituted by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) for cleansing and rejuvenation of the Yamuna.
The assembly noticed deliberations on the progress made on this entrance to this point.
At its third assembly on Tuesday, the panel members deliberated on the progress made on cleansing up the Yamuna whereas flagging lacunaes or shortfalls, if any.
“The meeting, held in the open at Asita East, developed on the floodplains of the Yamuna by DDA (Delhi Development Authority), was a testimony to the efforts being undertaken to clean the Yamuna and their success so far,” said an official launch.
Addressing officers, the Lt. Governor mentioned, “We owe it to our future generations. We have to hand over a clean Yamuna to our children, a Yamuna that our forefathers had inherited.””While works on various fronts and agenda are being undertaken in a time-bound manner in a bid to achieve our concrete goals by 30.06.2023, when the NGT will take stock of the improvements made, the biggest roadblock and challenge being faced was in terms of the desilting of approximately 200 kms of trunk/ peripheral sewer lines,” the L-G mentioned.
Further, in line with the official launch, “The gross inaction and neglect on part of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), which had not undertaken any desilting/cleaning work for the past 8-10 years, resulted in the sewer lines getting choked. Now that the desilting exercise has started after the first meeting of the HLC, it was coming to light that the sewer lines were choked upto 80-90 per cent than the earlier expected 40-50 per cent. Apart from sewage waste that is meant to go into the sewer lines, they were choked with boulders, municipal solid waste, etc. due to manholes being left open and unattended.””While 90.34 kms of sewer lines were projected to be cleaned by June 2023, the remaining 110 kms were expected to be cleaned by September 2023. The LG directed officials to take up the desilting work in a mission mode and complete it within the stipulated timeframe,” it learn.
It got here out additional through the assembly that despite the fact that air pollution ranges on varied parameters within the Yamuna had gone down over the last 2-3 months, particularly on account of interventions within the Najafgarh drain, air pollution ranges within the river had gone up over the last 5-6 years, if one reductions the 2 years affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The L-G described the duty at hand to be “difficult due to legacy neglect, but yet achievable”.
He exhorted officers to make sure the implementation of the choices taken on Tuesday on mission-mode, with out extending dedicated timelines.
Saxena additionally requested the officers to work with “seamless coordination and break departmental silos in coping with problems with public curiosity’.
The assembly was attended by senior officers of the stakeholder departments/businesses of the Union authorities and GNCTD, which included the chief secretary, DG (NMCG), further secretary (MoEF), GoI, divisional commissioner, chairman, DPCC, principal secretary (IFC), VC (DDA), Commissioner (MCD), PCCF, GNCTD, CEO (DJB) and CMD (DSIIDC) and all district magistrates (DMs), amongst others. (ANI)