Bengaluru: The National Green Tribunal (NGT), which penalized Mantri Developers for violations in projects coming up near the Agara and Belandur lakes and ordered creation of 75 meter buffer zones around all water bodies on Wednesday, has made it mandatory for mega projects to compulsorily use treated water for construction.
Noting that currently the construction industry uses merely one million litres of treated water a month , the NGT has in its order made it clear that all major builders must specify the use of treated water for construction and the source of their water supply when seeking Environment Clearance (EC). With not enough treated water used for construction, the BWSSB presently issues a partial No Objection Certificate (NOC) for various residential and commercial projects.
The tribunal has ordered that when granting EC, the water requirement for the construction and operation phases should be considered separately. If the construction industry feels the treated sewage water does not conform to the quality needed for construction , then the state government or the stakeholder concerned must take necessary measures for upgradation of the Sewerage Treatment Plant (STP), it insisted. Pointing out that the around four lakh cubic meters of earth excavated for construction has created a huge hillock- like structure, obstructing the natural flow pattern of the surface run-off from the Agara lake to Bellandur lake, the tribunal has ordered building of a garland drain around the existing dump site to re-direct it to the rajakaluves. It has also ordered the drawing up of a proper muck disposal plan duly approved by the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) for the disposal of excavated material on
the site.
Penalty of Rs 117.35 crore
The NGT has insisted on the penalty of Rs 117.35 crore imposed on the builders around the Bellandur and Agara lakes for violations being deposited with it before any further construction is taken up. It has also ordered that a proper plan be prepared for the service road and additional parking space created within the project area and incorporated as part of the overall project layout within three months of its order.
