NGT Takes Suo Motu Action After Media Report Claims Treated Water Supplied At Chinnaswamy Stadium For IPL Matches

NGT Takes Suo Motu Action After Media Report Claims Treated Water Supplied At Chinnaswamy Stadium For IPL Matches

The matter has been scheduled for hearing on 02 May

The National Green Tribunal has taken suo motu cognizance of the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru getting treated water supply for the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches, even as the entire city reels under a water crisis.

A Coram of Justice Prakash Shrivastava (chairperson) and Dr A Senthil Vel (expert member) registered the case based on a report published in a national periodical.

The report stated that on the request of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) permitted the supply of the treated water to the stadium from the Cubbon Park Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Currently, three matches are scheduled in Bengaluru and per day approximately 75,000 litres of water is required at the stadium during the matches.

While mentioning that Bengaluru was facing a shortage of 500 million litres of water per day against the actual requirement of 2,600 million litres per day, the report stated that of the 14,000 borewells in the city, 6,900 had dried.

It emphasized that even though the KWSSB banned using drinking water for car washing, gardening, construction and maintenance work in the city, it permitted such a huge quantity of water for the stadium during the IPL matches.

The Green Tribunal observed the non-compliance of environmental norms raised by the media. It thus issued notices to the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), the BWSSB, the KSCA Secretary, the Deputy Commissioner and the District Magistrate, Bengaluru.

The NGT noted that the BWSSB, KSPCB and the Deputy Commissioner did not have the details of groundwater, which was also used in the stadium.

It ordered the KSCA Secretary to file a detailed report disclosing complete facts about the quantity and source of water and the quality of treated water supplied to the stadium.