HYDERABAD:The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) issued directions to pollution control boards (PCB) of all states including Telangana, to keep natural as well as man-made storm water drains uncovered and ensure that they are de-silted. It also directed all state PCBs to work with the urban local bodies and ensure ‘strict compliance’ of the judgement issued by National Green Tribunal (NGT), Principal Bench, New Delhi in July in a case pertaining to storm water drains in Gurgaon. This includes imposing fines on those who are found polluting storm water drains.
The directions are aimed at ensuring that polluted water from the drains does not end up flowing into rivers and polluting them, like it happens in the case of Musi river in Hyderabad. It aims to ensure that the flow of water in the drains remains obstruction-free so that there is free-flow of excess rainwater through them. As per CPCB data, more than half of the sewage generated in Telangana is let out into water bodies without getting treated, and finally ends up in rivers.