The national green tribunal in the matter of G.S Bansal v/s State of Punjab & Ors directed the Rajasthan and Punjab pollution Control Boards to constitute a Commission for joint Study by Indian council of medical research, Delhi and the Indian toxicology Research Institute of Lucknow to find the root cause of increasing cancer patients in these two states.
The petitioner sought for directing the state of Punjab to stop polluting drinking water in gang canal.
It was contended that hundreds of people are getting sick after drinking the polluted water and the Punjab administration is taking no action against the factory owners to stop such pollution.
It is was also contended by the petitioner that the tribunal had issued several warnings in the past but they did not have any effect
The national green tribunal in 2022 directed to constituted a joint committee to submit a factual and action taken report on the matter.
The report disclosed that the district of Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan receives good quality of water throughout the year except in may and June as during such period the quality of water deteriorates due to stagnation near the gates during the closure of the canal however the report also disclosed that the measures were taken to address this issue.
The report stated that the water samples collected at different levels did not detect any heavy metals and the Punjab pollution Control Board already took actions to identify the source of pollution and also took measures to establish sewage treatment plants.
The report stated that incidents of cancer patient in the area are not attributable to canal water however the report also suggested to conduct a study through any reputable institute to investigate the issue and take the measures.
The joint committee recommended the government of Rajasthan to ensure that the raw water from the canal before reaching the urban and rural areas is treated and disinfected.
Thus after considering the report the national green tribunal directed the Rajasthan state pollution Control Board and Punjab pollution Control Board to constitute a joint study to identify the root causes of increasing cancer patients in both these States and also after completion of the study the copies of the report be sent to chief secretaries of the government of Rajasthan and Punjab and the concerned authorities then must take appropriate measures in accordance with the observations in the report and in a time bound manner and upload the study report on websites of concerned pollution control boards.
Written By Amruta Pawar, Semester 6th, College: School of Law, University of Mumbai, thane sub campus, an intern under Legal Vidhiya
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