The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Delhi government to seal all unauthorised borewells in the national capital within three months. This is to curb illegal extraction of groundwater through borewells in the city.
The order was passed by a bench headed by acting NGT chairperson Justice UD Salvi.
The directive came in view of a report filed by the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), which said that many borewells were running without the consent of government authorities.
The tribunal directed the deputy commissioner from the Department of Revenue to enforce the order and asked the police to provide necessary assistance in this regard.
The green panel also directed the authorities to mark borewells discharging contaminated water with a reddish hue, containing high levels of fluoride and arsenic.
On January 1 this year, the CGWA had issued an advisory notice to all households in Delhi, which said: “All groundwater users located in state/union territories where groundwater development is not regularised by the CGWA will have to obtain no-objection certificates from their respective authorities.”
