ગુજરાતી
English
Shocking claim of environmentalist Rohit Prajapati – Sabarmati river is not Kamilak river
Dirty and poisonous water of 1 crore people and 10 thousand industries falls into the river through 52 drains
Dilip Patel
Ahmedabad, 21 January 2025
It is becoming necessary to take steps to reduce the pollution of Gujarat’s ‘Sabarmati River’ and set an example of improving environmental responsibility. Sabarmati river has become the most polluted river in Gujarat after Ahmedabad. It has turned into a drain. The functioning of STP is not in accordance with the standards of NGT. Under the National Water Monitoring Program, the water quality of 603 rivers across the country was monitored and examined. Out of which 13 out of 25 rivers of Gujarat have been declared polluted, including Sabarmati, Bhadar and 8 rivers of South Gujarat.
3 with 345 mg
Sabarmati is the most polluted river in the state of Gujarat. If the amount of Biochemical Oxygen Demand i.e. BOD in a river is more than 3 mg per liter then the river is considered a polluted river. Sabarmati water has 292 mg BOD. The most polluted river in India is Cooum in Tamil Nadu, which has a BOD of 345 mg per liter. It became three hundred and fifty times more polluted river.
Sabarmati river of Ahmedabad is seen as the second most polluted river in the country.
Polluted water from Narol CETP is continuously flowing into the river. AMC and GPCB have still failed to stop pollution in the river.
Pollution from 52 places
Environmentalist Rohit Prajapati is a member of the Joint-Task Force (JTF) formed by the court on the Sabarmati river pollution issue. He says, even though the polluting industries have been closed, pollution continues. There are 80 chemical factories in Danilimda and effluents flow from the area. Water comes from the mega pipeline A drone survey by the Gujarat Pollution Control Board states that sewage and industrial water and garbage are being dumped into the river from 52 places.
Mega Pipeline
Factory and sewage water is treated through the Common Wastewater Treatment Plant of Ahmedabad city and is released into the Sabarmati through the mega pipeline. Organizations like Industries Association, GPCB, GIDC, AMC have set up Mega Clean Association to prevent the entry of chemicals into the Sabarmati river. A 27 km long magazine has been constructed from Naroda to Pirana to dispose of chemicals etc. found in the river from the industrial area.
Sour claims
The purification of polluted water is claimed by the Gujarat Pollution Board and the Ahmedabad Metropolitan Government. But details of the polluted water being released into it have come to light. Now the Ahmedabad government is avoiding the responsibility of the mega pipeline. The task force investigation has not been done for a long time.
CETP
Chemical water is directly drained into the river. Inspection reports of all 7 CETPs have not been prepared by Gujarat Pollution Control Board. The city government, Government of Gujarat, Ahmedabad Mega Clean Association and Ahmedabad City Commissioner are responsible for this. Common Wastewater Treatment Plant (CETP) is a facility that collects, treats and disposes wastewater from industrial and domestic sources. The cluster is designed to treat wastewater from multiple industrial sites.
Destruction of Biodiversity
Sabarmati river discharges effluents containing elements harmful to humans and ecosystem. Analytical reports have clearly shown that the effluent discharge norms (such as COD, BOD, SS, Chloride, Sulphate etc.) set by Gujarat Pollution Control Board have been completely failed. There is no respect or honour of court orders.
Toxic water in the river
Factories are emitting highly toxic pollutants. Even after severe criticism by the High Court, polluted water is being openly discharged into the river at Sabarmati. This damages biodiversity and environment. The High Court has ruled that no treated waste should be released into the Sabarmati river after treatment through mega pipelines or Suez. However, the High Court order is not followed by both the governments. No action is taken against industries or industry associations. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation could not give any concrete answer on the issue of purification of Sabarmati river and Suez treatment plant.
Lies in the name of water treatment
The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation is also lying in the court. Regarding the capacity of the 106 MLD treatment plant, the High Court said, ‘According to the mid-term plan, the officials say that the work will be completed by February-2025, but the tender has not been given, so how can you say that the work is going on. Vasna STP works at half capacity. New STPs will come in 2026, 2027 and 2028. The STP is not working at full capacity and hence 35 MLD water has to be diverted. It is often said that the progress is by no means satisfactory.
Steps
Action was taken against 61 industrial units in 2022-23 for releasing chemically polluted water into the Sabarmati river. In which 32 units were closed. Show cause notices were given to 12 industries, notice of direction to 16 units and legal notice to one unit. 32 industries were closed permanently but 10 of them were allowed to reopen.
Chemical river
Rs 280 crore has been spent to clean the river. The Sabarmati river has become lifeless. The city
A river passing through
Its water is borrowed from Narmada. So it looks like Rupali. But after the Vasan dam, this river has become a river carrying chemicals. For three decades, sewage water is being released into the river without treatment. Toxic chemicals are also released into the river by industrialists. The BJP, which has established permanent power in Ahmedabad, is responsible for this.
Order
The country’s Supreme Court has ordered that sewage water cannot be released into rivers, water sources or even into the ground without treatment. The Supreme Court also asked the units to be closed permanently.
Red soil
Up to 50 kilometers down the river, agricultural land along the river has turned red and they have had to increase the use of chemicals for agricultural production. Red water is coming out of borewells.
Standing crops get spoiled. The yield has reduced to half. The river water turns clothes red. The river is full of chemicals. Wheat and paddy grow in such water along the river and are consumed by people. The number of cancer and skin patients is increasing in every village.
Sulphate and Chloride
High levels of sulphate can lead to the growth of sulphate-reducing bacteria, which produce hydrogen sulphide. This gas has a rotten egg base and is toxic to aquatic life.
High levels of sulphate in drinking water can cause intestinal disease and digestive problems. It is dangerous for children.
High levels of chloride are harmful to aquatic ecosystems, as animals cannot tolerate high levels of salinity. When river water is used for irrigation it reduces soil structure and yield. As the amount of salt in water increases, high blood pressure occurs. This reduces oxygen in the water due to the decomposition of bacteria. Which causes the destruction of fish and other aquatic animals. Contains toxic substances. (Google translation from Gujarati)
