2 days ago
GB Nagar: 10 ponds set for facelift for water recharge
The Gautam Budh Nagar administration has approved the renovation of 10 ponds across various villages in the district to promote groundwater recharge, said officials on Friday. A pond in Greater Noida's Bhola Rawal village. (Sunil Ghosh/HT photo)
The initiative is being undertaken in accordance with directives issued under the 2022 National Green Tribunal (NGT). The renovation of ponds will be carried out by the Noida authority in coordination with the District Ground Water Management Council, which recently held a meeting and gave approval for the project, said officials.
'As part of efforts to conserve and replenish groundwater, 10 ponds have been identified for rejuvenation. These were selected based on feasibility and site-specific potential for recharge, in accordance with NGT guidelines and the recommendations of the District Ground Water Management Council,' said Deputy general manager (civil), Noida authority, Vijay Rawal.
Officials informed that the Noida authority will soon be carrying out the required desilting, cleaning, and structural work for the rejuvenation of these water bodies. The aim is to ensure effective recharge of aquifers and to restore the ecological utility of neglected ponds.
To be sure, District Ground Water Management Council is a district-level advisory and oversight body set up by the district administration to review and manage groundwater usage and recharge efforts in the district, approve plans for pond rejuvenation, borewell regulation, recharge structures, coordinate with various departments including irrigation, jal nigam, and urban development authorities among others.
According to the list approved, the selected ponds are located in the villages of Satharpur, Harola (Wazidpur), Roza, Shahdara, Salarpur Khadar, Jhatta, Koudli Bangar (three ponds), Badoli Bangar, and Miyapur.
'The selected ponds have been identified based on current groundwater stress levels and their potential to serve as recharge points. The initiative is part of a long-term strategy to improve groundwater sustainability in the district, which has been facing growing water scarcity concerns due to rapid urbanisation and declining recharge capacity', said Rawal.
As per official records, the area of these ponds ranges from 0.0632 hectares to 1.391 hectares. The largest among them is located in Miyapur village (1.391 hectares), while the smallest is in Roza (0.0632 hectares). Detailed information such as the village names, khasra numbers, pond areas, and designated work circles have been compiled and shared with the respective departments to begin site-level action, officials said.
Officials informed that Noida authority, will oversee the physical rejuvenation work of these ponds. The respective work circles, including work circle 3, 4, 7, 8, and 10 have been informed and tasked with necessary field-level execution.
