Shillong, Sept. 11: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has asked the Meghalaya government to specify whether common sewage treatment plants have been constructed in the municipal area of Jowai in West Jaintia Hills district to treat domestic waste water before it is discharged into the Myntdu river.

The tribunal has been conducting hearings on pollution of the Myntdu since early this year.

Earlier, the Jowai Municipal Board had said the health of the river had been seriously affected because of human intervention and that it had reduced in size because of heavy siltation.

A report prepared by the Meghalaya State Pollution Control Board says the river has turned blue because of high acid content.

In a hearing held recently, the tribunal's eastern zone bench had said that the case had raised several vital issues pertaining to the Myntdu in the areas falling under respondent Jowai Municipal Board.

In its order, the bench said, 'The state and the Jowai Municipal Board shall specifically indicate whether common sewage treatment plants have been constructed in the municipal area for treatment of domestic waste water before being discharged into the river. They shall also state whether a sewerage network has been established in the town of Jowai.'

The municipal board argued that the Jaintia Hills Autonomous District Council (JHADC) had the jurisdiction and authority to grant permission for any activity.

However, the bench, saying that the need to set up these facilities could not be avoided, directed the state to ensure that necessary clearances are obtained from the appropriate authority, be it traditional or institutional. 'An affidavit shall be filed on these aspects before the next date,' it said.

The next hearing on the matter is October 26.

Sajay Laloo, a resident of West Jaintia Hills who had approached the tribunal on the river's pollution, said his counsel had filed an affidavit on the lapses and non-compliances of the state government. He hoped that with the tribunal's intervention, Jowai would become the first town to have a proper sewer network in Meghalaya.

Jowai, the headquarters of West Jaintia Hills district, is around 65km from here.

Laloo said the state government has so far not paid any heed to the tribunal's directives on cleaning the Myntdu.

'Many drains are under construction in and around Jowai but they do not have domestic solid waste trapping system or silt barrier. They are all free-flowing drains through which domestic waste water will be directly discharged into the river,' he alleged.

Laloo said he would also bring to the tribunal's notice the 'illegal operation' of more than 40 per cent of car washing centres, which do not have any filter or effluent treatment plant.

He said the Jaintia Fishing Association had taken up the issue with the municipal board but had not received any satisfactory reply.

He also expressed concern over the dumping of garbage along the road by vendors of Iawmusiang market in Jowai.