Car washing facilities in Noida to get recycled water only

This first-of-its-kind move in Noida comes after the National Green Tribunal on October 11, 2022, observed that many car washing facilities extract groundwater illegally

The Noida authority said on Tuesday that it will provide treated waste water to car washing facilities in the city to discourage them from using drinking water and groundwater to wash vehicles.

Officials said once the supply of recycled water to private car washing centres is ensured, the authority will likely ban the supply of fresh water for washing cars. (Sunil Ghosh/HT Photo)

“We have decided to supply treated waste water to private car washing facilities at five paisa per litre from our sewage treatment plants in Sector 54,” said RP Singh, deputy general manager of the Noida authority, who heads the water department.

Officials said once the supply of recycled water to private car washing centres is ensured, the authority will likely ban the supply of fresh water for washing cars.

This first-of-its-kind move in Noida comes after the National Green Tribunal on October 11, 2022, and issued directions to government bodies, including the Noida authority, to seal illegal borewells that are used to extract groundwater for purposes such as car washing.

NGT also ordered that an “environmental penalty” be imposed on those found using borewells without approval for causing damage to ecology.

After the NGT order, the Greater Noida authority sealed at least 10 borewells. However, no such action has been taken in Noida so far.

There are 870,000 registered vehicles in Gautam Budh Nagar. There are at least 50 privately owned car washing centres in Noidathat service as many as 200,000 vehicles per year.

The Noida authority will conduct inspections at these centres and impose a penalty ranging from ₹5,000 to ₹1 lakh depending on the gravity of the violation committed by the offender.

According to a report of the central groundwater authority in 2012, the water table in Gautam Budh Nagar had been depleting at a rate of 3.87 metres per year as compared to 1 metre earlier in the two largest blocks of the district — Dankaur and Bisrakh — from 2008 to 2012.

According to the assessment, the deepest point in Gautam Budh Nagar where water could be found was 30.38m — approximately 10 storeys deep — at the Govt Degree College in Noida. The water table here fell by 2.32m from 28.06m in 2019.

“We welcome this step of the authority, provided that they give us quality recycled water that does not smell or cause health issues,” said Sandip Chauhan, who owns a car washing facility in Sector 66.

Meanwhile, the Noida authority said it will also open automated car washing facilities in the city on public-private model that will only use recycled waste water for washing vehicles.

With the help of the PPP-model car washing centres, the Noida authority believes it can ensure groundwater is not used for washing cars in the city.

The authority will rope in private agencies to operate these facilities. Initially, the authority will set up four such facilities in different sectors.

“We are likely to issue a tender to select the competent agency that will run the four facilities. The authority will provide the land and recycled water, and the expert agency will set up and operate the facility,” said Indu Prakash Singh, officer on special duty, Noida authority.