Aravalli Range
Mountain range in Asia
The
Aravali Range literally meaning 'line of peaks', is a range of
mountains in western India running approximately 692 km in a
northeastern direction across Indian states of Gujarat, Rajasthan,
Haryana and Delhi. Wikipedia
Elevation: 1,722 m
GURGAON: The NGT, in its first hearing of a petition filed by city-based environmentalist Vivek Kamboj and Amit Chaudhery on groundwater contamination at Bandhwari on Wednesday, ordered the municipal corporations of Gurgaon and Faridabad to ensure proper dumping of waste, maintenance and collection of already dumped waste while ensuring that it does not contaminate the groundwater at Bandhwari.
In their petition, Kamboj and Chaudhery had expressed concern over groundwater pollution at Bandhwari where 4 million litres of leachate had seeped in. Following this, the Haryana government and the municipal corporations of Gurgaon and Faridabad were asked to file affidavits with the green court before the hearing.
The tribunal on Wednesday directed the respective agencies to file their replies within two weeks and scheduled the next hearing for November 23.
The petitioners requested the NGT for immediate relief from dumping of construction, industrial and biomedical waste into the forest area of the Aravalis. They also requested that immediate steps be taken to prevent further contamination of the groundwater caused by the plant.
The site of the waste treatment plant has been lying defunct for almost two years and has turned into a landfill with thousands of tonnes of garbage being dumped every day.
On Wednesday the petitioners said, "It is extremely unfortunate that incompetent, callous and insensate leadership of public bodies acting in a completely obtuse manner are trying to destroy collective natural heritage by violating the law and by large-scale dereliction of duty."
Kamboj said the Aravalis were of unique and seminal importance to Gurgaon, Faridabad and New Delhi. "It is a national natural treasure, being the oldest fold mountains in the world after the Urals. In the protected forests of the Aravalis, the local authorities have connived to divert forest land and set up a waste management plant at a cost of Rs 200 crore of the taxpayer's money besides destroying large areas through mass dumping of waste," he said.
Of the 30-acre area that houses the treatment plant, 12 acres are being used as a landfill that receives about 800-1,000 tonnes of garbage each day from Gurgaon and Faridabad. Another 18.5 acres of land
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