‘Complete tendering process for STP at Haldwani in 8 weeks’

The Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday directed authorities concerned to complete tendering process for setting up a solid waste treatment plant in Haldwani within eight weeks

Published on: Jul 18, 2018, 21:53:26 IST

Hindustan Times, Nainital | By Neeraj Santoshi

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The Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday directed authorities concerned to complete tendering process for setting up a solid waste treatment plant in Haldwani within eight weeks.

The high court also directed the government to complete construction of the solid waste treatment plant in Haldwani with next six months. (HT Photo)

The direction came after Nainital district administration told the court that the government issued an order for transferring 4 hectare of forest land on 30 year lease to Haldwani civic authorities, said Alok Dalakoti, counsel for the petitioner in the case.

District magistrate of Nainital and other senior officials of the administration were present in the high court.

The HC also directed authorities concerned to set up a fence around the present trenching ground within three weeks so that the waste doesn’t spread around.

The directions were given by the division bench of Justices Rajiv Sharma and Sharad Kumar Sharma while hearing a public interest petition (PIL) filed by Haldwani based Jan Vikas Samiti of Indira Nagar in 2017.

The PIL had filed a petition in the court, saying biomedical waste was being dumped around the banks of Gola river in the name of trenching ground.

The Samiti members maintained that it was causing environmental pollution in the area and could be detrimental to local people and ecology.

On Tuesday, the court directed the forest department to provide details with 24 hours of suitable land available for building a solid waste treatment plant in Haldwani where solid waste could be disposed of on scientific lines and forest clearance is provided for the same at the earliest.

It also directed the government to complete construction of the plant with next six months.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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