The National Green Tribunal prohibited dumping of waste within 500 meters from the edge of the river. Every offender would be liable to pay a penalty of Rs. 50,000 per offence along the stretch between Haridwar and Unnao.
On Tuesday, NGT's principal bench headed by Justice Swatanter Kumar, the green tribunal directed that “ 100 meters from the edge of the river would be treated as no development/ construction area zone” along the stretch.
In December, last year NGT has imposed a plastic ban on the Gomukh- Haridwar stretch and a fine of Rs. 5000 was imposed on the hotels and Dharamshala for dumping waste along the river.
NGT's direction is purely directed at tanneries and polluting industries situated along banter and Unnao. There are 450 tanneries along the river which are considered as a major source of pollution in Ganga. NGT has also instructed the Uttar Pradesh government to move the tanneries and industrial units to an appropriate location within six weeks.
Further, the NGT has also ordered that sewage drains in the cities along the stretch as well as drains from tanneries and industrial units be realigned at regular intervals.
The NGT judgment comes on PIL filed by an environmental activist and advocate MC Mehta in 1985. His PIL was transferred to NGT by Supreme Court in 2014.
The task of cleaning Ganga has been divided into phases by NGT. From Gomukh to Haridwar, from Haridwar to Unnao and then from Unnao to UP border.
After, that it will stretch from UP border to Jharkhand and then finally to the Bay of Bengal.
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