NGT Gives Delhi Jal Board 4 Weeks to Respond on Rainwater Harvesting Violations
The National Green Tribunal has granted the Delhi Jal Board four weeks to submit a compliance report regarding allegations that the agency failed to follow tribunal directives on rainwater harvesting systems, groundwater recharge, and water quality monitoring across New Delhi.
The tribunal's order came after an applicant submitted that the Delhi Jal Board and other civic bodies have not adhered to environmental mandates. According to the applicant, the green panel had explicitly directed that rainwater harvesting systems must not be installed near storm water drains in order to prevent contamination of groundwater. Despite this order, the Delhi Jal Board, along with the Delhi Development Authority, New Delhi Municipal Council, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, and National Highways Authority of India, reportedly failed to comply.
The applicant also raised concerns over the lack of monitoring mechanisms, citing directives that mandate the installation of piezometers near harvesting systems to track water levels and quality, as well as pollutant separators prior to recharge. The applicant stated that even after nearly seven years since the order, the Delhi Jal Board has not installed a single piezometer. While each department is required to install piezometers within a one square kilometre radius—requiring 1,500 piezometers across Delhi's 1,500 square kilometre area—the applicant highlighted that no action had been taken.
Additional allegations concerned the depth of recharge borewells. The applicant claimed that most borewells were drilled 100 to 400 feet deeper than the water level, breaching the tribunal's mandate that borewells must remain at least five metres above the static water table. Deficient harvesting systems located near storm water drains have also allegedly been left open and unrepaired.
The submission cited an action taken report filed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee in 2025, which indicated that show cause notices had previously been served to the Delhi Development Authority and Municipal Corporation of Delhi over deficiencies in rainwater harvesting systems.
After the Delhi Jal Board requested four weeks to seek instructions and submit its compliance report, the tribunal granted the time. The National Green Tribunal has scheduled the next hearing in the matter for October 27.
