UPPCB seeks ₹10 lakh penalty on Noida developer over Grap violations

UPPCB recommends ₹10 lakh compensation for a Noida developer over missing dust controls at a construction site during GRAP Stage-I.

NOIDA: The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) has recommended an environmental compensation of ₹10 lakh against a developer in Sector 134 for alleged violations of dust-control norms at its construction site despite the prevailing GRAP Stage-I restrictions, officials said on Saturday.

The team found multiple violations, including the absence of green nets, water sprinklers and a tyre-washing facility (Photo for representation)

They added that the action follows a complaint filed by a Sector 134 resident via social media. Following this, a UPPCB inspection team visited the construction site — comprising plots B-31, B-32, B-33 and B-34 in Jaypee Greens Wishtown — on October 28.

During the inspection, the team found multiple environmental violations, including the absence of green nets, water sprinklers and a tyre-washing facility, officials added.

In a communication dated October 30, regional officer Ritesh Kumar Tiwari submitted a recommendation for environmental compensation to UPPCB’s chief environmental officer in Lucknow for violations of the National Green Tribunal’s directions. The document was accessed by HT.

According to officials, construction activity was underway despite the prevailing GRAP Stage-I restrictions, while several mandatory pollution-control measures were found missing. The officials found that excavated soil and building materials were stored in the open, both inside and outside the project premises, leaving them exposed to wind and vehicular movement.

The inspection also found that the prescribed wind-breaking walls had not been installed around the project. Green nets were missing from the under-construction buildings, while the structures were not adequately covered to prevent dust emissions from construction activities.

Further, building materials were found dumped in the open near the ready-mix concrete (RMC) plant. The team also found that water sprinklers had not been installed near the plant to prevent dust from spreading.

Another violation concerned the absence of a tyre-washing system at the project’s main entrance. As a result, heavy vehicles entering and leaving the site could carry mud and construction debris onto the adjoining road, adding to dust pollution, the report stated.

“During the inspection, several deficiencies in the implementation of prescribed dust-mitigation measures were observed,” said regional officer; UPPCB, recommending that ₹10 lakh in environmental compensation be levied against the project under the NGT’s July 20, 2016, order in the Vardhaman Kaushik versus Union of India case.

Officials said that inspection findings have also been forwarded to the Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate and the Noida authority’s civil and environmental departments, seeking necessary action against the project.

The UPPCB has separately directed the developer to ensure strict compliance with environmental norms during construction.

“The violations were noticed during the inspection, and the matter has been taken up with the concerned authorities. A recommendation for environmental compensation has also been sent,” said Kishan Singh, assistant engineer, UPPCB Noida.