NGT orders inspection of area near Kaushambi Bus Terminal

Traffic chaos near the Kaushambi Bus Terminal on the Delhi border has caught the attention of the National Green Tribunal which today directed inspection of the area and sought a detailed report on the issue.
A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar constituted a committee comprising officials from Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi Pollution Control Committee and Uttar Pollution Control Board and ordered them to submit an inspection report within three weeks.
"The committee shall inspect the site in question and also take ambient air quality samples. They shall find out different sources of air pollution including vehicular pollution resulting from jams in the area," the bench said while posting the matter for next hearing on April 21.

The green panel was hearing a petition filed by Kaushambi Apartments Residents Welfare Association (KARWA) which had contended that the presence of two bus terminus (Anand Vihar and Kaushambi bus terminal) within 200 metres of each other has aggravated air pollution in the area.
Seeking relocation of the bus terminus, the plea had said "Two interstate bus depots (Anand Vihar ISBT and UPSRTC Bus Stand), a state highway, national highway (NH24 and SH27) and two industrial areas (Sahibabad Industrial Area and Patparganj Industrial Area) have engulfed a residential township (Kaushambi) into a pollution disaster zone," the plea said.
During the hearing today, the residents welfare association contended that there was illegal parking on metalled roads in and around Kaushambi on single to four lane roads which cause traffic jams.

It alleged that despite prohibitory orders private diesel buses were plying in the area in an unregulated manner and the Uttar Pradesh police was not taking any action against the violators.
KARWA claimed that Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation has not concretised their bus terminal in Kaushambi resulting in massive dust pollution from loose soil.
Earlier, the Tribunal had reprimanded UP government for its failure to control traffic near Kaushambi Bus Terminal and directed the traffic police to penalise offending vehicles.