The National Green Tribunal today directed 18 states and two Union Territories to submit an action plan to ensure utilization of treated waste to reduce pressure on the groundwater resources throughout the country.

Hearing a plea, a bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel directed the states and UTs to submit the action plan within three months to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).

The green panel said the states which have still not furnished their action plans are defaulters for violating the directions of the tribunal for which no valid reason can be seen.

It noted that only nine states and five UTs have submitted the action plan. Accordingly to the CPCB status report, the states which have not submitted action plans include Gujarat, Assam, Bihar, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.