ANJALI YADAV / Dehradun
While the district administration and Municipal Corporation of Dehradun (MCD) are focusing on cleaning the city’s rivers, tankers carrying sewage from residential and commercial buildings are dumping untreated sewage directly into the Rispana river near Shivlok Colony in Shastrinagar. Locals state that despite this activity posing a threat to the ecology and public health, it has been continuing unabated even in broad daylight for months now.
Visiting the area, this correspondent found a tanker draining sewage into the river through a pipe instead of disposing of the waste at the designated Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) at Kargi Chowk and Mothrowala. Residents alleged that such tankers frequently arrive at the spot, empty their loads into the river within minutes and leave. When The Pioneer contacted the mobile number displayed on one of the tankers, the person who answered said that he had shifted to Ghaziabad and had sold the tanker before leaving Dehradun. He declined to reveal the identity of the current owner.
On being informed about this, Dehradun assistant municipal commissioner Rajbir Singh Chauhan said that only 30 sewage tankers are officially registered with the MCD. These operators pay an annual licence fee of Rs 2,970 and are permitted to dispose of sewage only at the authorised STP. He said that any tanker found dumping sewage elsewhere is liable to face action, including a fine of Rs 5,000 and seizure of the vehicle.
Based on information provided by The Pioneer, Chauhan verified whether the tanker in question was registered and found that the number is not registered with the MCD. Chauhan said that the corporation has contacted the number displayed on the vehicle and is trying to identify its current owner. “Once the owner is identified, the tanker will be seized and action will be taken as per the rules,” he said. He added that the corporation has also written to the Regional Transport Office (RTO) seeking details of sewage tankers operating in the city so that appropriate action can be initiated against them.
Shivlok Colony residents said that illegal dumping has become a routine affair. Bajrang Kumar said that sewage tankers visit the spot almost every day and drain untreated waste into the Rispana before leaving.
