No NOC for groundwater extraction with Jaipur, Raipur cricket stadia: Report to NGT

New Delhi, Nov 29 (PTI): The National Green Tribunal was recently informed that the international cricket stadia in Jaipur and Raipur did not apply for no-objection certificates to extract groundwater despite repeated reminders.

The Central Ground Water Authority's (CGWAs) report therefore requested the tribunal to pass a suitable order, underscoring even the district magistrates concerned did not initiate any action against them.

In May, the tribunal directed the CGWA and state GWAs to expeditiously decide the pending NOC applications by the cricket stadia.

The directions were issued while hearing a plea against the use of ground water for the maintenance of cricket stadia alleging they neither utilised the alternate sewage treatment plant (STP) water, nor installed rainwater harvesting systems for storing and replenishing the ground water.

In a report dated November 20, the CGWA noted it had informed the green body that the BCCI provided a list of 26 stadia, of which 14 were regulated by the CGWA and the remaining by the SGWA.

Among the 14 stadia, three -- Barabati Cricket Stadium in Cuttack, Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur and Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, in Raipur -- hadn't applied for the NOCs.

Regarding the present status of NOCs, it said the Barabati Stadium was issued the certificate on November 13.

But the Jaipur and Raipur stadia did not apply for NOCs, it said.

"Despite repeated reminders through letters and emails, the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) has not applied for NOC for the extraction of groundwater by Sawai Mansingh Cricket Stadium," the report said.

It said the CGWA of the western region requested the district collector (DC) or district magistrate (DM) of Jaipur to take action against the stadium but "despite repeated reminders" no action was taken and on November 11, the authority directed the DC to seal the stadium’s borewells and submit an action taken report report by November 16.

Similarly, the director of the sports and youth welfare department did not apply for the NOC regarding the use of ground water by the Raipur stadium, nor did the DC take any action, following which the CGWA issued directions for sealing the stadium’s borewells, the report stated.

"It may be gathered that despite several reminders through letters, and emails, neither the cricket associations/stadia have applied for NOC, nor the DC or DM concerned initiated any action on erring stadia," it said. PTI MNR AMK