Kaushambi pollution: Ghaziabad civic body to plant 400 trees to reduce noise

The Ghaziabad municipal corporation on Friday agreed to key demands raised by Kaushambi Apartments RWA (Karwa), including planting 400 tall trees and installing a sluice gate near the Sahibabad drain, to reduce the effect of pollution on the township

The Ghaziabad municipal corporation on Friday agreed to key demands raised by Kaushambi Apartments RWA (Karwa), including planting 400 tall trees and installing a sluice gate near the Sahibabad drain, to reduce the effect of pollution on the township.

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Officers from various departments, district magistrate RK Singh and municipal commissioner MS Tanwar met with Karwa and officials of the UP Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) to discuss the issue at the district headquarters.

Karwa president V K Mittal said that the corporation offered to plant tall Ashoka trees at the periphery of the township to act as a barrier to noise pollution and the sluice gate will prevent waste water from the Sahibabad drain to flow into the Kaushambi drain and overflow into the nearby areas.

Mittal said that this was in keeping with a national green tribunal (NGT) order of 2016 that asked the civic bodies to address pollution in the township.

When there was a delay in implementation, Karwa moved a contempt petition in September 2019 that is still being heard. The association is also contesting another petition at the apex court over several pollution related issues, including a traffic management plan in the area.

Municipal commissioner Tanwar said that the work on the two projects will be complete within the month.

“We have planned 400 tall Ashoka trees on the periphery of the township so that it acts as barrier against noise generated by traffic. This will start within a week. The installation of sluice gate will also be started and likely to be completed within a fortnight,” he said.

The Kaushambi Township comprises 22 high-rises and located next to congested Anand Vihar border. The Kaushambi ISBT is also located next to the township while there is also an adjacent Sahibabad Site IV Industrial Area besides the Ghazipur landfill site which is also in vicinity.

“We also raised the issue of conversion of UP Roadways (UP State Road Transport Corporation - UPSRTC) buses from diesel to compressed natural gas (CNG). There are about 700 buses operating out of the ISBT and they are a major source of pollution for our residents. Some of other issues like removal of encroachment and movement of traffic through Kaushambi are pending and needs action to be taken up,” Mittal said.

The DM could not be reached for comment.

“The UPSRTC officials at the meeting said that about 100 buses were now CNG-powered. Since it is a policy decision and requires state funding, a decision to convert buses to CNG cannot be taken at local level,” said Utsav Sharma, regional officer from UPPCB.

During a hearing on August 23 over Karwa’s petition, the NGT directed the divisional commissioner (Meerut) to hold meetings with the officers of the agencies of Ghaziabad district to take cognisance of the pending pollution-related issues of the Kaushambi and also take remedial action.

In its order, the tribunal also directed for personal appearance (nowadays over videoconferencing) of divisional commissioner (Meerut), district magistrate of Ghaziabad, SSP of Ghaziabad and regional officer of UP pollution control board.

Akash vashishtha, a city-based environmentalist, said, “While Ashoka trees can reduce noise pollution to an extent, the civic body may also go for species like banyan that have broad leaves that can also help. These trees can also control dust pollution in the area.”