No one takes charge of Hindon as filth flows in it

GHAZIABAD: While the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has banned the dumping of construction waste and religious items into the Yamuna in the national capital, there is no clarity yet on which agency will be in charge of cleaning the Hindon that merges with the Yamuna in Gautam Budh Nagar.
The Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) and the UP irrigation department are locked in a bitter battle over who is responsible for keeping the Hindon pollution-free.
The civic body claims its jurisdiction is limited only to clean-up of litter left on the banks of the river after fairs or religious celebrations, and that such garbage is regularly cleared. "The river in itself is not under our jurisdiction. The river falls under the jurisdiction of the state irrigation department. Any step that needs to be taken to keep the water free from pollution needs to undertaken by that department," D K Sinha, additional municipal commissioner, Ghaziabad, told TOI.
In a landmark order, the NGT had recently ordered imposition of a fine of Rs 50,000 on anyone found dumping construction waste in the floodplain of river Yamuna and a fine of Rs 5,000 on anyone throwing religious items into the river, under "the polluter pays" principle.
The state irrigation department in Ghaziabad, which is the custodian of the Hindon river in the district, says that it is not statutorily empowered to impose penalties and fines upon polluters. Neither does it have the necessary wherewithal to depute officials to keep a vigil on those dumping wastes into the Hindon.
"Our custody over the river extends only as much to the structures like barrages and so on which are erected across it. But we are waiting for the certified copy of the tribunal order for elaborate instructions and finer details," said Ravindra Singh, executive engineer of the irrigation department, Ghaziabad.
According to environmental activists, restricting the dumping of debris and other materials into the Hindon is extremely necessary in order to keep the Yamuna free from pollution because two rivers meet a few km downstream of Ghaziabad.