Residents of nearby areas submit letter to NGT panel chairman Aparna Banerji Jalandhar, December 3 Led by Ward No. 2 councillor Sushil Kumar, a letter signed by 100 residents of the Kalia Colony here and nearby areas was submitted to the Chairman of the NGT Monitoring Committee here today. Standing by the Kala Sanghian drain — as the NGT Committee later stopped by the drain flowing through the Guru Amar Das Colony — the councillor said a few days ago the level of the drain was double what it was today. Areas affected by the filthy water include Kalia Colony, Guru Amar Das Nagar, Raja Garden, Bulandpur and Gidaipur. “Every time the NGT visits for a few days, the level of the drain goes down. As soon as the NGT buzz dies down, the water levels are back again,” Sharma said. Residents said ahead of the NGT team visit, the repair work on one of the tanks routing sewage water into the drain was also undertaken, though the rest of the time, the sewage from the tank goes into the drain. In their memorandum to the NGT, residents wrote that the Focal Point of Jalandhar was developed in 1992 under the scheme of the Punjab State Industrial Export Corporation (PSIEC) and manufacturing units were installed in the area. For the discharge of the industrial water, which contains hazardous chemicals and other toxic substances, a treatment plant was sanctioned for which every industrial units were charged separately every month by the PSIEC. Now, residents say the waste from these 800 manufacturing units - functional in the area - fall into the drain, throwing life in colonies of banks into disarray and leaving a trail of diseases. Sharma said the industrial sewer line was illegally connected with the residential sewer line a few years ago, but when residents objected to it, it was disconnected. However, he said the line was again connected on June 3, 2019, causing the industrial water containing chemicals to flow into residential localities. He said: “Floors of houses in the Kalia Colony change colours. People get allergies and diseases. Once the discharge increases, the houses are flooded. We have sent photos and videos to the authorities and made repeated complaints. The water is black and emanates a foul smell, as it is chemical waste.” Similar pollutants were also found in the drain near DAV College as officials stopped over to take a look. Rags and plastics have been floating in water and yesterday an animal carcass was also found floating in water.

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