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National Green Tribunal (NGT) on August 13, 2024 directed Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) to submit a report detailing the reasons for the poor water quality in the Sarayu drain and the Rapti river, specifically before their confluence with the Ami river.
The water quality of the Sarayu drain was classified as ‘D’ and ‘E’ based on primary water quality criteria, both before and after it met the Ami river and similarly for the Rapti river, according to a report submitted by the joint committee on August 9, 2024.
The application was registered following a petition by Mohd Jamshed Jiddi, dated August 22, 2023, which alleged that the project proponent, India Glycols Ltd (IGL), was polluting the Ami, Rapti and Ghaghara rivers by discharging water containing chemicals, adversely affecting agricultural land and causing water pollution.
A letter by Jiddi claimed that IGL’s extra-neutral alcohol or ENA plant produces 110,000 litres of spirit per day and uses around 1.2 million litres of fermented wash. However, only a third of this is accounted for, with the remainder — comprising spent wash, fermented wash and condenser wash — discharged through the Sarayu drain into the Ami river, resulting in pollution and health hazards.
The NGT on August 13, 2024 directed that Punjab Pollution Control Board be included in proceedings related to solid waste management in Ludhiana’s sabji mandi (vegetable market). Ludhiana deputy commissioner, Municipal Corporation of Ludhiana and Punjab Mandi Board were also impleaded by the court.
These respondents are required to file their responses at least one week before the next hearing on November 25, 2024. The application was based on a report from the joint committee dated February 14, 2024.
District mandi should prepare a detailed project report on waste management, either in consultation with the Municipal Corporation of Ludhiana or independently and submit it to the committee, the report stated. The Mandi Board was also instructed to take action against those responsible for burning waste within five days and submit a report to the committee.
Reports were also submitted by the district mandi officer and the Municipal Corporation of Ludhiana to Punjab Pollution Control Board. The district mandi officer, on April 25, 2023, informed the environmental engineer of Punjab Pollution Control Board that Mandi Board required the municipal corporation’s assistance for legacy waste disposal, as the corporation had the necessary machinery.
The Mandi Board has designated land for a compost plant and is already operating a plant in Sabji Mandi Phagwara in collaboration with Indian Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute, which manufactures bricks from vegetable and fruit waste.
Regarding the actions taken by Punjab Pollution Control Board, the board issued directions to the District Mandi Officer on January 16, 2024. These included directing Punjab Mandi Board to process both legacy and fresh solid waste in accordance with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. Mandi Board is required to manage the solid waste properly, ensuring segregation and environmentally sound disposal, and to eliminate the use of single-use plastics on the premises, the report stated.
A report filed by Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board with the NGT on August 14, 2024 revealed that there are 33 pharmaceutical companies in Madhya Pradesh. Of these, 18 are fully compliant with the norms issued by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Show cause notices have been issued to the 15 companies that are not compliant.
On May 6, 2024, NGT directed a response outlining compliance with regulatory norms, including the number of pharmaceutical companies in each state, those adhering to norms and those against whom action has been taken for violations, as well as proposed measures to prevent environmental damage from pharmaceutical toxicity.