DJB tells NGT nearly 3,800 illegal borewells in Delhi shut by residents

Report notes 153 borewells untraceable due to faulty addresses, while five in southeast Delhi were regularised through District Level Advisory Committee approvals.

Out of the 4,033 illegal borewells in the Capital, around 3,800 have already been shut by residents, as per an action taken report submitted by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).

(Representative image) NGT had flagged vague categorisation; DJB said residents dismantled or filled borewells, with a new enforcement team and policy promised to tackle water crisis issues. (HT Archive)

The report, dated September 9 and submitted to National Green Tribunal (NGT), addressed the issue of the illegal borewells in compliance with the NGT order on May 28 this year.

“In particular, the tribunal found that categorising all 4,033 borewells under one vague head was unsatisfactory and directed DJB to clarify how identified borewells became untraceable and to verify the place and manner of closure of those stated to be closed,” the report mentioned.

Following the NGT order, DJB found that 3,875 of the illegal borewells had already been closed by the residents themselves and no longer existed.

“In these cases, the borewell structures have been dismantled or filled up voluntarily, prior to or during the investigation,” DJB had said.

Besides, another 153 were found untraceable due to incorrect or incomplete addresses of the premises, DJB informed.

Only five of the borewells, all located in southeast Delhi, as per DJB data, were discovered to have obtained valid approval from the District Level Advisory Committee (DLAC). These borewells, though initially flagged as illegal, have been regularised through proper permissions.

Delhi water minister Parvesh Verma, in August, had said that DJB is setting up an enforcement team to curb illegal borewells across the city and will soon introduce a clear, practical policy for their regularisation. The policy, he had said, will address the broader issues of the water crisis, borewell sealing, and water supply problems in unauthorized colonies.