Youth Activists rally to make Rispana valley a no construction zone

Dehradun based student activist group, Making a Difference by Being the Difference (MAD), has requested the District Magistrate of Dehradun, Ravinath Raman to act on his assurance of declaring the upper region of Rispana Valley as a no-construction zone to enable ground water recharge and enhance river flow in the stream .
MAD, which has been actively campaigning for the revival of Dehradun’s drying and dying streams had been invited by the District Magistrate in a high-level meeting of various departments and public representatives convened at the Collectorate a few days back. It was attended by MLAs Harbans Kapoor, Ganesh Joshi, Raj Kumar and Umesh Sharma, high ranking officials of the Public Works Department, Nagar Nigam, MDDA, Police, Irrigation Department and Forest Department had also attended this two hour meeting where all stakeholders including young MAD members had brainstormed about the way forward for reviving these streams.
“In this meeting, MAD had made a brief presentation of the 98-page dossier on the revival of Bindal and Rispina streams. As can also be seen from a perusal of the minutes of the meeting released by the DM office, we had raised the matter of declaring Rispana’s upper valley region from Kelaghat to Makrait as a no-construction zone given that massive encroachments by builders and slum dwellers alike is rising in that area. This suggestion had been accepted by the DM and all stakeholders in that meeting. We are now requesting the DM for acting on this suggestion as a notification to this effect will strengthen our fight to revive the streams”, remarked MAD’s Founding President, Abhijay Negi.
In addition to this, MAD has also requested the DM to in turn, direct the Forest Department to explore the possibilities of massive plantation throughout the riverbanks of Rispana and Bindal to deter encroachment and increase vegetation.
MAD has already got a nod from the Chief Minister on its rival revival campaign who had directed the DM to involve MAD in all its efforts aimed at streams’ revival. The group plans to take this campaign to all the schools and colleges of the city. MAD is also in discussions with renowned Environmental Lawyer, MC Mehta on this issue and is briefing him about all developments.
MAD activists also expressed satisfaction at the newfound cooperation between the Nagar Nigam and the State Government on the issue of city hygiene and cleanliness. MAD has urged both the State Government and Nagar Nigam to work together to ensure that Dehradun’s garbage disposal system remains intact. On its part, the group has vowed to continue with its ongoing safai yatra.