Borewells in Narela, Bawana: NGT directs meeting of officials

The National Green Tribunal today directed the principal secretary of the AAP government and the CEO of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) to hold a meeting on the issue of extraction of water by industries in Narela and Bawana.
A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar asked the officials to meet today itself and inform the tribunal about their stand on extraction of water by borewells in highly-exploited areas and devise alternatives to stop illegal withdrawal of water.
The green panel directed them to submit the minutes of the meeting in a week.
The tribunal had earlier rapped the city government and the DJB over illegal borewells in Narela and Bawana industrial areas in the city which has led to serious depletion of water levels.

The NGT had taken exception to the "abuse" of its interim order by the Delhi government to allow borewells in these industrial areas.
The tribunal was hearing petitions filed by the NGT Bar Association and Raj Hans Bansal opposing the illegal use of groundwater in Delhi.

The green panel had in 2014 set up committees comprising officials of the DJB, Central Ground Water Authority, the city government and other bodies to seal the illegal borewells in these industrial areas and file a comprehensive report.
It had also ordered the committees to prepare a comprehensive report on how many borewells were operating in the industrial pockets, including Bawana and Narela, and whether they had the permission from competent authority or were registered with the Delhi administration.

Taking serious note of the "water scarcity" in Delhi, the tribunal had pulled up the authorities for failing to perform their statutory administrative obligation in ensuring adequate water supply.