Constructions across river will impact flow, National Mission for Clean Ganga tells NGT

The NMCG said that the impacted length of the river leads to “discontinuities,” which may result in a decline in “biodiversity, fisheries, groundwater levels, soil fertility, and waste assimilation capacity of rivers. The NMCG also noted that no approval had been taken from it before making such arrangements to cross the river.

The NGT has been considering a case regarding construction of a temporary bridge across the Yamuna at Sonipat, Haryana, to facilitate sand mining.

An NMCG official visited the area along with a representative of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board on March 22 and found that the arrangement for crossing the river was removed.

Since no permission was obtained by project proponent or by the government of Haryana to set up structures or pipelines, provisions of the 2016 order have been violated, NMCG has said. The NMCG has recommended that activities that may impact flow of the river should be regulated.

Delhi Water Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj had also alleged last month that bridges across the river, along with “illegal sand mining” are obstructing the river’s flow and resulting in a dry river downstream at Wazirabad in Delhi, and water shortages.