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The Supreme Court of India has expressed concern over untreated sewage being discharged into rivers and rivulets in villages, towns and cities of Uttar Pradesh, saying that it is polluting the very sources of water upon which the survival of the population and bio diversity depends. It has also asked the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to ensure that the state government addresses the issue. But are rivers, streams and water bodies in other states free from this menace? The answer is a NO. The case of Uttar Pradesh is just a drop in the ocean as rivers in almost all the states are replete with all sorts of wastes – solid, plastic, electronic, and even human corpses. Even Nagaland, though a small hill station, has its share of water contamination issues with urban areas -- Dimapur and Kohima – often hitting the headlines for waste problem. The state capital has earned notoriety for releasing septage into rivers and drains especially during the rainy season, emitting foul odor and causing health threats to the citizens. The fact that the Ganges, a holy river for the Hindus, is considered one the most polluted rivers in the world and reportedly had hundreds of human corpses floating in the river during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, speaks volumes about the condition of water bodies in the country. Sensing the threat water pollution poses to human health and environment, the government of India launched the Namami Gange Programme in 2014 to abate contamination and rejuvenate the Ganga and its tributaries. Thousands of crores of rupees have been spent on this mission with the Centre releasing INR 2,250 crore from the financial year 2020-21 to 2021-22 (till January 31) alone. This menace is not only inflicting untold damage to the environment, endangering marine life and posing threat to human health but also giving unnecessary strain to the state’s exchequer.
The NGT, a statutory body that deals with cases related to environmental issues, had clearly stated in its past rulings that dumping of sewage in water bodies is an offence and that clean environment is a fundamental right. The green panel has also penalised many states including Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram for non-compliance with the Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSW) Rules, 2016. It’s also been more than six years since the Supreme Court directed all the states to set up sewage treatment plants within three years for treatment of waste but many states still haven’t complied with the directive. The state governments should step up and establish adequate waste treatment facilities without delay. For a healthy environment, civic bodies and citizens too should play their part by adopting sustainable waste management practices. This will help avoid contamination of water bodies as well.