NGT directs committee to look into plea on rain water harvesting

New Delhi: The National Green Tribunal Thursday directed a committee to look into a plea for installation of properly designed Rain Water Harvesting Systems (RWHS) in government buildings in the national capital.

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said it has already formed a committee headed by ex-judge of the high court to look into issue of rain water harvesting.

In view of the fact that this Tribunal has already constituted a Committee headed by a former Judge of the Delhi High Court to go into the issue of RWHS in Delhi, we request the said Committee to look into issues raised in this application and include its observation on the subject in its next report, the bench said.

Since the report of the Committee will be duly considered in the matter, it is not necessary to keep the present application pending for being dealt with separately, it said.

A copy of this order be forwarded to S.P Garg, former Judge of Delhi High Court by e-mail, the tribunal said.

The applicant may furnish a set of papers or any further suggestions to the said Committee, the bench said.

The tribunal was hearing a plea filed by Delhi resident Mahesh Chandra Saxena seeking direction that properly designed Rain Water Harvesting Systems (RWHS) should be employed while the systems being currently constructed in several government buildings do not have proper design.

The plea said the effect that if these designs are used, underground water will be more contaminated as various pollutants mix up with the water to be harvested.

Roadside water is going to the sewer lines with contaminants which ultimately goes to the rivers, it said.

The plea said 350 housing societies are also constructing wrongly designed RWHS and recharge bore-wells are not properly designed which may result in wastage of resources and damage to the environment.