Additional Chief Secretary K. Jayakumar inaugurating the first joint annual meeting of Central Ground Water Board and Kerala State Ground Water Depart

T.S.Shankar and K.Lakshmi

CHENNAI: The spurt in the construction activity and indiscriminate drawal of water along East Coast Road has resulted in the groundwater table going down in areas near the scenic coastline.

PUDUKOTTAI: Villagers and political parties have opposed the plan to set up a bottling unit by an Indian Made Foreign Liquor firm at Kallakottai in Gandarvakottai taluk, arguing that it would deplete the groundwater table and cause pollution.

In a move fraught with serious repercussions for the already critical ground water levels in the south and southwest districts in Delhi, Faridabad and Gurgaon, the Central Ground Water Authority has decided to permit boring of new tubewells for domestic purposes in these regions on the condition that the area deputy commissioner be intimated 10 days before work is to start.

DH News Service,Chikkaballapur:

Sand transportation in the entire district is completely banned.

District In-Charge Minister Dr Mumtaz Ali Khan announced this decision at a meeting of elected representatives, officials and various organisations organised by Sand transportation committee in Chikkaballapur on Friday.

There is some good news for Punjab. For the first time in the past decade, the sub-soil water level has shown an upward trend. In testing done by a Central agency, results have shown that with excessive monsoon this year, coupled with late and regulated sowing of paddy, water levels in some parts of Punjab have risen by up to 4 m.