Mahi’s death puts officials on their toes

The Supreme Court on February 11,2010,issued wide-ranging guidelines on borewells and groundwater. A copy of the rules has been sent to the officials responsible for cracking down on illegal borewells.

Deputy Commissioner P C Meena said all drilling agencies,irrespective of whether they are government or private,must apply for registration at the administration’s groundwater cell. Their applications should specifically mention the name of the owner of drilling machines,his/her permanent and current address,and details of the machines.

Police have been given strict orders to file FIRs and press charges against any unregistered agency caught drilling a well.

Meena has also directed owners of boring machines to submit a fortnightly report on what work they have undertaken during the period.

Moreover,the monitoring teams,police officers and tehsildars have been told to carry out surprise checks whenever necessary. These officials would regularly report about the status of these checks,Meena said.

The administration has also launched a drive to fill up all abandoned and open borewells.