NGT final hearing on August 10

Vijayawada: The extent of the floodplains of Krishna River and Kondaveeti Vagu is again going to be a subject of arguments before National Green Tribunal (NGT), New Delhi, on August 10.

The NGT is going to hear on the cases filed by former IAS officer E.A.S. Sarma, Pandalaneni Sri-mannarayana and Rythu Sanghams. The NGT has granted last opportunity to file the reply. The case is listed for arguments on August 10. The NGT has stated that the parties are directed to complete their pleadings in the appeal which will also be listed on August 10.

In fact, the NGT has witnessed serious arguments by advocates in the matter of developmental activity planned for the capital city of Andhra Pradesh on the banks of the river between Vijayawada and Guntur, earlier.  

Advocates Sanjay Parikh and Sravan Kumar, who argued on behalf of petitioner Pandalaneni Srimannarayana, said that the state government failed to provide the extent of the floodplains of Krishna River and Kondaveeti Vagu. The Capital Area Development Authority (CRDA) had admitted that the height of the capital area had to be raised by two metres to prevent inundation from the Kondaveeti Vagu and the Krishna river, in its earlier submission to NGT.

The advocate, pleading the case on behalf of the state government, A.K. Ganguli, had stated earlier that the extent of the floodplains had been already identified by an authentic agency - Tata Consultants. The advocates of the state government produced a map to NGT. However, petitioners’ advocates Sanjay Parikh and Sravan Ku-mar raised an objection in the earlier hearing by saying that the map was not given to them.

Speaking on it, petitioner’s advocate Sravan Kumar said that the state government failed to provide the extent of the floodplains of Krishna River and Kondaveeti Vagu. Meanwhile, social activist and one of the petitioners Gandhi Anu-molu said that the existing flood plains on the banks of Krishna River would be dismantled, in case of allowing the construction activity in that region.

The flood plains area has the capacity of storing flood water up to 30 to 40 metres beneath the ground, which gives back the water to the river during dry seasons, he explained. The petitioner has questioned the integrity of both CRDA and the state government for mentioning different years related to the construction of river bund on the banks of Krishna.