untreated-sewage-worsening-ganga-s-condition-ngt-to-up

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has raised concerns over the deteriorating water quality of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh, attributing the decline to the discharge of untreated sewage into the river.

The tribunal was reviewing the progress made in preventing and controlling pollution in the Ganga, for which it had sought compliance reports from various states, including Uttar Pradesh.

On November 6, NGT Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and other bench members, Justice Sudhir Agarwal and expert member A Senthil Vel, considered a report from Uttar Pradesh, which revealed significant gaps in sewage treatment in the Prayagraj district.

The report indicated a shortfall of 128 million litres per day (MLD) in sewage treatment, alongside the revelation that 25 untapped drains were discharging untreated sewage into the Ganga, while an additional 15 drains were discharging sullage into the Yamuna.

According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), out of the 326 drains identified in Uttar Pradesh, 247 remain untapped, discharging 3,513.16 MLD of wastewater into the Ganga and its tributaries.

The tribunal expressed dissatisfaction with the progress and directed Uttar Pradesh's Chief Secretary to file an affidavit providing detailed information on each drain across the state.

This should include data on sewage generation, plans to connect these drains to sewage treatment plants (STPs), and timelines for making the plants operational.

The NGT also referred to a CPCB report concerning 41 STPs located across 16 Ganga-front towns.

The report revealed that six of these plants were non-operational, and of the remaining 35, only one was fully compliant with environmental regulations.

Furthermore, water quality monitoring at 41 locations showed disturbing results. Faecal coliform levels, which indicate contamination from human and animal excreta, were found to exceed the acceptable limit of 500/100 ml at 16 locations, with 17 locations registering over 2,500 MPN/100 ml.

The tribunal highlighted that this clearly pointed to the deteriorating quality of water due to untreated sewage being discharged into the river.

The tribunal instructed the Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary to disclose measures taken or proposed for ensuring that the STPs are made operational and comply with the prescribed norms. The affidavit is to be filed within four weeks.

The matter will be taken up for further proceedings on January 20.