Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, June 4: High Court today directed the LAWDA and UEED to ensure the timeline for upgradation of STPs in Dal lake is place before the Committee of Experts so that the effluents released into the lake are prevented.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Rashid Ali Dar directed both LAWDA as well as UEED to ensure that action in terms of the prescription of the parameters by the National Green Tribunal is taken at the earliest and report in this regard shall be filed before the court by the next date of hearing.
Court also directed the State Pollution Control Board to assist the LAWDA and UEED to examine this issue and find the best solution at the earliest. In this connection directions have been issued to the Urban Environmental Engineering Department (UEED) by the Committee of Experts to submit a report by 10th June 2019.
However, State counsel prayed for a short adjournment to file the action taken report on behalf of the UEED before the court. “Such report shall be positively filed within one week from today. Let soft copy of the reports filed before us be made available by Dar immediately to the Committee of Experts for its scrutiny”, Court directed.
These directions followed after the Member Secretary, J&K State Pollution Control Board submitted that so far as the treated effluents being released into the Dal Lake is concerned, the same is being released by six STPs, out of which five are maintained and operated by LAWDA, while as, one is maintained and operated by UEED.
The 6th report of the Committee of Experts has disclosed that so far as the sewerage is concerned, there are more than 80 pumping stations, out of which, twelve are intermediate pumping stations. Four of these are maintained by LAWDA, while seven are under the Urban Environmental Engineering Department (UEED).
Member Secretary, State Pollution Control Board also informed the court that the National Green Tribunal has passed orders with regard to the treatment of the effluents and BOD standards of the treated effluents which would be permissible for release into water bodies.
Court said, it appears that effluents being released by LAWDA & UEED into Dal Lake do not meet these standards. Court said the LAWDA & UEED have to take emergency steps to upgrade the quality of STPs so as to meet the optimum OD levels as are permitted by the standards approved by the NGT.
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