Devendra Fadnavis orders polluted water bodies to be notified as tributaries

The Poisar nullah is among the filthiest tributaries in the city. File pic

City's filthy nullahs, which have been the main breeding grounds for mosquitoes, may finally get a makeover, as the state government has notified the polluted waterbody as a "tributary".

The decision came after activists met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on July 15 to discuss protecting the city's rivers and the environment at large.

Top of the agenda
According to sources, the issue of notifying the nullahs as tributaries was at the top on the agenda of the meeting. "At present, these tributaries are called nullahs. But, these nullahs are part of rivers. We demanded that the government address the issue at the earliest. Further, we have also demanded sewerage treatment plants at all the locations where sewers connect to the river in Mumbai, so that treated water can enter into these tributaries," said Gopal Jhaveri, member, River March Movement.

After the meeting, Fadnavis tweeted about notifying nullahs as tributaries. "The CM asked officials to notify rivers, its tributaries and also for sustainable technological solutions to treat water before it enters rivers," a tweet from the CM's handle read. "CM @Dev_Fadnavis also asked to bring in regulations for plastic waste and debris but stressed to focus more on solutions for its disposal," another tweet read.

Pollution runs deep
Some of the most polluted tributaries are found at Poisar, Vakola, Irla, Dahisar, Shimpoli, Juhu and JVPD. These tributaries usually criss-cross railway lines. Apart from the Mithi river, the BMC also maintains 260 km of major nullahs and 465 km of minor nullahs. Additionally, there are 2,049 km of roadside nullahs across Mumbai.

Most of these tributaries have slums and illegal structures built alongside, making it difficult to maintain them, said a civic official.