In a significant hearing addressing environmental compliance and civic infrastructure, the Delhi High Court expressed acute concern after being informed that a major industrial hub in the city, the Mundka Industrial Area, completely lacks essential services like drinking water, storm water drainage, sewage lines, and Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs).
The Division Bench of Justice Prathiba Singh and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora, hearing a suo-motu petition on pollution and Yamuna cleaning, today highlighted the serious public health and environmental risks posed by this administrative failure, underscoring the urgency of the ongoing redevelopment project.
The controversy is part of a broader PIL initiated by the Court after noting chronic waterlogging issues in Delhi, which has expanded into an oversight of 27 non-conforming industrial clusters. The central conflict emerged when the Court was informed that the Mundka Industrial Area, filled with working industries and thousands of workers, subsists on water tankers for drinking supply while privately engaging pumps to remove sewage, which is then illegally dumped.
This situation has led to excessively high Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) levels, rendering groundwater unusable. While the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC) is overseeing redevelopment, the Court had to intervene due to procedural delays and disputes, including directing the Mundka Industrial Welfare Society (MIWS) to immediately sign an MoU to commence the necessary survey work.
The High Court expressed astonishment at the sheer lack of infrastructure in a functioning industrial area. The Bench immediately connected the lack of sewage infrastructure to the city's broader pollution problems, noting the illegal dumping of effluent. The Court was particularly concerned about the impact on the industrial workers, given the lack of even drinking water supply.
The judges pressed the Delhi Jal Board counsel for an immediate solution and issued multiple procedural directions to accelerate redevelopment. The Bench orally remarked in disbelief, "How is it possible that you don't have basic storm water drains, sewage and water?"
The Court directed DSIIDC to release the necessary funds to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and ordered the private survey agencies to submit all survey plans to MCD for processing by December 20, ensuring that "release of funds shall not be stopped." The Court further directed that the survey in the Mundka Industrial Area "shall commence without any delay."
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