India, July 22 -- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Tuesday expressed dissatisfaction with the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), saying it had failed to "act promptly" to regulate groundwater extraction by hotels and guest houses in Paharganj.

On April 1, the tribunal directed hotels, guest houses and other commercial establishments in Paharganj to install piezometers-devices used to measure groundwater levels-so that groundwater extraction could be assessed and charges levied accordingly.

It also directed the DJB to file a status report on the installation of piezometers in 555 identified establishments.

In its report submitted on July 16, the DJB said only 162 establishments had installed piezometers, while the remaining 393 continued to ext...