The Hindu : New Delhi News : Mall may add to water woes

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jul 12, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Mall may add to water woes

By Mandira Nayar

NEW DELHI, JULY 11. Water shortage might just be one of the problems that residents of Vasant Kunj and Vasant Vihar will have to face if the Vasant Kunj Mall comes up at the site proposed by the Delhi Development Authority, say environmentalists.

And a recent report submitted to the Supreme Court's Central Empowered Committee (CEC) in a petition filed by the Citizens for the Preservation of Quarries and Lakes Wilderness (CPQLW) to declare this area a protected forest, reaffirms their doomsday warning if the construction is not stopped immediately.

"We had moved the Court to declare this area a protected forest in January 2004. The CEC issued a directive to the Chief Secretary, Delhi Government, and the Ministry of Environment and Forests in March to ensure that there was no further construction and felling of trees. This was followed by a site visit and interim report by an expert appointed by the CEC, Shekhar Singh, who also upheld our point of view,'' said Vikram Soni of CPQLW.

Geologically a part of the Ridge, the area is a vital piece of "green'' that should be declared and notified as a reserved forest immediately, the report recommended. "Also, no activity that would not be permitted in a national park should be allowed in the area,'' the report said.

The report also points out that the area is very important for recharging of ground water for South Delhi, an area facing an acute water shortage of water. To avoid adverse impact on ground water regime, pumping of ground water below water table is not recommended in the Ridge area. A fact that Central Ground Water Authority also emphasised in a letter to the CEC in June 2004. "It is imperative that the areas extending from south west of Mehrauli to Masudpur and north to Vasant Vihar is a "recharge area'' for the underline aquifers in the vicinity. Development activities may adversely affect the ground water regime in the area,'' the letter stated.

"Malls, hotels and housing colonies built in this area will themselves require a huge amount of water (each room in a five-star hotel is said to consume 1,000 litres of water a day). Therefore, the proposed constructions will impact water availability adversely on two counts, one by significantly reducing the ground water recharge (and polluting whatever remains) and by significantly increasing the demand of water far beyond the capacity of the area to meet,'' the letter stated.

Besides, causing water woes, any construction in this area will also increase pollution levels in the neighbouring colonies. The vegetation of the Ridge acts as a sink for many pollutants by acting as a purifier of air by replenishes oxygen in the atmosphere. The forest area also has the ability to absorb noise and plays an effective role as a noise buffer. It also helps regulate temperature in the city, according to the report.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

New Delhi