New Delhi, Jul 31 (IANS): The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued notice on a plea alleging large-scale, excessive and indiscriminate concretisation of roadsides and constructions in parks in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad.

A bench headed by Chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava sought the response of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Uttar Pradesh government, Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB), Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam, and others in the matter.

The plea filed by advocate Akash Vashishtha claimed that indiscriminate concretisation and paving become the biggest cause of water-logging, urban flooding, prevention of natural water recharge, heat multiplication, and loss of biodiversity in cities and towns.

It said that indiscriminate concretisation/pavements of roadsides and road berms and constructions inside parks is in gross contravention of various orders of the NGT, guidelines of the Union Ministry of Urban Development and also GO issued by the UP government.

The application filed before the green tribunal seeks directions for the whole of the country, in view of the massive concretisation, and the environmental hazards arising therefrom, being experienced in all cities and towns across all states and UTs.

Senior advocate Sanjay Upadhyay, representing the applicant, submitted before the NGT that the menace of concretisation and complete paving of soft open areas, roadsides, road berms and constructions inside parks has become a hazard for all cities and towns.

The matter will be heard next on October 21.