Road built over waterbodies, NHAI ‘taking remedial steps’

By Sumit Blogs -

Gurgaon: Groundwater depletion has been a concern in Gurgaon for many years. Now, many new infrastructure projects are adding to the water woes of the city.
In fact, two key waterbodies (each of two acres) and their water channels used for irrigation and flood prevention purposes by the farmers of Kiranj and Hajipur villages as well for groundwater recharge have been destroyed and their catchment areas are being used for the construction of the DND-Delhi-Vadodara Expressway link road by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
TOI visited the site on Thursday and found that the link road — part of NH 148NA — is coming up on the waterbodies. Villagers claimed that around 200 trees were also felled but no compulsory afforestation has been carried out in the area by the NHAI to date.
The villagers also pointed out that they were not consulted by the highways authority before the destruction of the crucial waterbodies. “Moreover, the entire link road that is, the DND-Faridabad-Ballabgarh bypass-KMP Interchange section of NH 148NA, which is approximately 60km long, doesn’t have a single entry-exit point for the local people to use,” said Prem Mohan Gaur, a resident of Hajipur village.
According to environmentalists, it’s high time that the NHAI woke up to the problem of Gurgaon’s depleting groundwater table.
“The authorities should avoid making any construction on any waterbody and if it is completely unavoidable, pillars should be used to keep the same unaltered. The highways authority has a history of destroying waterbodies which come in the way of their infrastructure projects,” said Vaishali Rana Chandra, an environmental activist.
Many major waterbodies in Gurgaon have disappeared altogether. Every year, the district witnesses flood-like situations during the monsoon due to the flowing channels being impeded by arbitrary constructions in the city. As per the records submitted by the district administration to the National Green Tribunal (NGT), there are 826 water bodies in Gurgaon. Of them, as many as 20% are at risk due to discharge of untreated sewage, industrial effluents or wastewater.
When contacted, Dheeraj Kumar, NHAI project officer, said, “We are aware of the issue and taking remedial steps. We will restore a waterbody next to the upcoming link road. Also, we have already deposited money with the forest department for the felling of trees. But we do not carry out any afforestation.”
Credit Source – https://ift.tt/3nHxJ3z

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