The Union and state governments should make sure that small cities do not become what Mumbai is today, the Supreme Court said on Friday while describing Maharashtra’s capital as one of the most polluted cities in the country.

A bench of justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and MR Shah emphasised that smaller cities have to be protected from the kind of development and changes that a big city like Mumbai went through. “If you don’t take steps for cities which are on the brink of industrialisation then what quality of life will these cities have after some years? They will go down the same way,” the bench told the two law officers of the Centre, appearing on behalf of the environment and urban development ministries. The court’s comments came after additional solicitor general KM Natraj, representing the urban development ministry, submitted that the norms for effluent discharge by sewage treatment plants (STPs) in water bodies cannot be the same for all the cities.

The court also clarified that financial constraints cannot be cited by MCGM as a reason not to upgrade the STPs, especially when the municipal body happens to have a budget of ₹10,000 crore which is more than the budget of some states.

News Source : IndiaEducationDiary