Our orders cannot be avoided: National Green Tribunal

New Delhi: Concerned over lack of coordination and cooperation between various departments in cleaning river Yamuna, the National Green Tribunal has said it has all the "trappings of the civil court" and its directions on this and other issues should be complied with without any "default and delay".

"This tribunal has all the trappings of the civil court and is to evolve its own procedure in consonance with the principle of natural justice. The decisions or the directions of the tribunal are to be executed as a decree of the civil court. Consequently for execution and implementation of the directions issued by the tribunal, by the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure including attachment of property and arrest, could be taken recourse to.

"This is in adhesion to and not in derogation to the powers of the tribunal to have its orders to be executed in accordance with law if necessary including consequences of disobedience of the order of the court. We have mentioned this aspect to dispel the impression that the orders of tribunal can be avoided by any authority or the government without any justifiable reason," a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar said.

The observations came while monitoring the implementation of its "Maili se Nirmal Yamuna Revitalisation Project 2017".

The tribunal, which had called meeting of the Principal Committee as well as senior most officers from the Haryana and Delhi on February 25, expressed regret that "none of the agencies has taken any effective steps in furtherance to the judgement of the tribunal at the ground level".

It passed a slew of directions for effective and expeditious implementation of its judgement including installation of CCTV cameras and deputation of special force to help and cooperate with the DDA to ensure no dumping takes place.

The tribunal also directed the authorities to carry out "physical demarcation" of the floodplains of Yamuna within three weeks. It also directed the Committee to check whether the Common Effluent Treatment Plants installed in Delhi's industrial clusters are capable to treat the quantum of trade effluent that is being discharged by the industries.