Illegal quarrying in the bed of Ghaggar river and sewage waste released from Panchkula, Zirakpur and adjoining villages have posed a threat to the flora and fauna near Chhatbir Zoo.
Besides quarrying, lack of water in the Ghaggar, too, has affected the visits of birds and animals.
A pipe discharges dirty water into the Ghaggar and people have been taking away soil from the river bed.
Chhat (Banur): Drastic fall in number of birds on the banks of Ghaggar river that runs alongside the Mahendra Choudhary Zoological Park, famous as the Chhatbir Zoo, has upset bird lovers.
Just days after dead fish was found floating on the Sutlej and industrial pollution wreaking havoc in the state, Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal today sought the release of Rs 302 crore from the Union Environment Ministry to control pollution in the Sutluj and Ghaggar rivers. Badal today met Union Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh and sought the money.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Thursday urged Union Minster of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh to immediately release Rs 302 crore for the abatement of pollution of rivers Sutlej and Ghaggar.
Owing to a 100-foot-wide breach in the Ghaggar river, which occurred last night near Makror Sahib village (near Moonak), water entered standing crops on about 2,000 acres in several villages, including Moonak, Fulad, Salemgarh, Bhunder Bhaini and Surjan Bhaini, while crops on about 1,000 acres have been almost submerged.
Khanauri (Sangrur): Ghaggar, known to be flooding paddy crop in and around this area in the Sangrur Lok Sabha constituency and also in parts of Patiala, is changing after decades .
Leader of the opposition Rajinder Kaur Bhattal has sought from the government adequate compensation to farmers of Sangrur, Patiala and Mansa distructs, especially Lehra constituency , whose land had been acquired under the Ghaggar project.
The indictment of the Punjab Pollution Control Board by the Punjab and Haryana High Court could not have come a day too soon. Without mincing words, the court has held the board responsible for not taking action against the polluting industries in Dera Bassi.
Ratia (Fatehabad): The wild life conservation department has swung into action after crocodiles were spotted in the Ghaggar, passing through the town, near Kanwalgarh village, on Monday.
While two crocodiles were seen sitting on an elevated sandy place on the bank of river on Monday, local people said they had spotted at least five-six crocodiles in the river.
