The Pune Municipal Corporation on Wednesday started removing debris from the Mula-Mutha riverbanks at Sangamwadi and Shivne following a National Green Tribunal directive.
Taking note of the rampant dumping of debris, and encroachments, along canals and riverbeds in the city, the National Green Tribunal (NGT), on October 1, instructed the municipal corporations to remove the encroachments from the rivers.
The civic body had submitted an affidavit to the NGT stating its action plan to free the rivers of encroachments. The two spots - Shivne and Sangamwadi - are important due the latter is a confluence of two rivers and the former witnesses rampant pollution coupled with encroachments by industries.
PMC environment department head, Mangesh Dighe, said, “We got the NGT order on November 26, 2019, according to which we had to submit an action plan and we did. The action plan has two main points - a long-term action plan and a short-term action plan. The short-term plan is removal of encroachments and debris, which we have started. The long-term plan is working on the river rejuvenation project (Japan International Cooperation Agency or JICA) which will help improve the water quality of the rivers. The NGT had ordered all urban local bodies to submit an action plan,” said Dighe.
However the civic body has not yet quantified the amount of debris present at the riverbanks or the amount that needs to be removed. Dighe said, “Along with the debris clearing, we will also conduct a parallel survey which will quantify the debris. The survey will determine how much of it needs to be removed and how much quantity is present inside the river.”
{{/usCountry}}However the civic body has not yet quantified the amount of debris present at the riverbanks or the amount that needs to be removed. Dighe said, “Along with the debris clearing, we will also conduct a parallel survey which will quantify the debris. The survey will determine how much of it needs to be removed and how much quantity is present inside the river.”
{{/usCountry}}The civic body has identified Wagholi and Undri dumping ground and also abandoned quarries in Mulshi to dump the debris. Dighe said that the debris would be used to fill in the quarries.
Hindustan Times through a series of reports has been highlighting that debris is being dumped at Sangamwadi and that there are various encroachments on the riverbed. The current drive, according to officials, is being carried out by PMC building construction department. Despite repeated attempts through phone calls and text messages, the building permission department head Prashant Waghmare did not respond.
Sarang Yadwadkar, the environment activist, who filed the petition with the NGT, said that Shivne in Maval taluka is a den for industrial encroachments as multiple industrial sheds have come up near the riverbank. Yadwadkar said, “The civic body must first remove the encroachments and then clear the debris. The industrial sheds have come up on the reclaimed land of the river which was created by dumping the debris in the river.”