NGT orders construction of sewage treatment plant to save Santragachhi
Times of India | 2 March 2025
123 Kolkata: The National Green Tribunal has directed state agencies Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) and the urban development department, along with Howrah Municipal Corporation and South-Eastern Railway, to complete the construction of a sewage treatment plant (STP) at Santragachhi Jheel by the end of the year.
The state chief secretary has been asked to file an action taken report by Jan 15, 2026.
The construction and commissioning of the STP are crucial to stopping the flow of sewage from homes and establishments in the vicinity of the jheel. The presence of sewage in the jheel water leads to the growth of hyacinth at a faster pace.
Though 60%-70% of the hyacinth is cleared in Nov-Dec to allow migratory birds to sight the jheel's water during their flight and halt to rest and roost, it regenerates to cover the entire jheel within months.
The migratory bird count dropped alarmingly a few years ago when no clean-up was done to clear hyacinth before that winter.
Activist Subhas Datta moved the NGT Eastern Bench in 2016, alleging the failure of Howrah Municipal Corporation, SE Railway authorities, and West Bengal Pollution Control Board in preventing damage to the jheel, a notified bird sanctuary. He pointed out that the discharge of untreated sewage from areas under HMC was damaging the lake that lies in the SE Railway's jurisdiction.
Following hearings, the tribunal in July 2022 ordered HMC to set up an STP along with a garland drain within four months to prevent the discharge of untreated sewage into the lake. It ordered the Railways to provide land to set up the STP and take steps to remove encroachment within three months from the periphery of the lake. The DM was asked to provide necessary assistance for such eviction.
Though affidavits submitted by parties stated that a DPR was done, when construction of the STP did not begin, Datta again moved the NGT. The latest directive seeks to address the issue yet again.
Members of a city NGO that works in the field of nature-wildlife conservation and has been cleaning the jheel ahead of the migration season for the past few years have pointed out time and again that the rapid growth of hyacinth will cease only when dumping of untreated sewage into the lake water stops.
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