NEERI red cards construction in flood-prone belt

NASHIK: The National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) has suggested a blanket ban on construction of buildings and jogging tracks along the red line zone of the Godavari.
The institute, in its recommendations submitted to the Bombay high court recently, has also suggested immediate demarcation of the blue and red lines along the river to ensure that the ground water level doesn't get disrupted.
The institute said demarcation of the red and blue lines should also be done for the Godavari's tributaries, such as the Nasardi, Valdevi, the Waghadi. The act for the floodline demarcation came in 1988-89.
"If there are concrete constructions next to the water body, then the ground water flow gets disturbed. This should not happen. We have recommended that there should be no construction in these area," NEERI director Rakesh Kumar said.
"The general perception is that that after the rainy season, there is no flow of water into the river. But this is not true. Even after the rains, the water from the catchment areas percolate into the river and this flow should not be stopped. Besides, there are flood spillways. The Water should get space to spread during floods or else there would be more problems," he added.
"The third category is that of the blue line and the red line. These should be marked on the basis of the character of the river and not at random. Hence, the blue line and red line will be different for different rivers. Also, a retention wall should be constructed where there is lateral pressure of the soil. The retention wall also disturb the natural flow of the river," Kumar added.
Following these recommendations, even the aesthetic development near the river would become difficult.
"We have seen the river before the concretisation work and when it was clean. We welcome the recommendations of NEERI. At least now the new constructions will stop," said Suraj Joshi, a resident of Panchavati.
Devang Jani, a resident of Panchavati and who has been fighting against tampering of the river, said, "The definition of blue line and red line do not exist in the NMC. There are many illegal construction in the blue line and new constructions in the red line. There are many illegal buildings in the gaothan area.
He added, "After the floods in 2008, the water resources department had marked the lines but there has been no proper implementation. The riverbed has been concretised up to 7-8 feet, so there is no seepage and natural channels have been disturbed. The 2008 flood was destructive because of the conreting of the river bed."
Environment activist Rajesh Pandit dubbed the suggestions as "historic".
Municipal commissioner Praveen Gedam said, "Construction of any kind is a different issue. Landscaping is allowed. But I will have to go through the report. I have not yet received it."
On NEERI's observations about sanitation post-Kumbh, civic health officer Vijay Dekate said, "We have divided the zones among our sanitary employees and have divided them in morning and evening shifts. They are cleaning these zones - East, West, Panchavati and Nashik Road. We have also posted some people to supervise the work.