seventeen units of the Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (gidc) have been served prohibitory orders by the district magistrate of Vapi in Valsad district, Gujarat. This was in response to a study conducted by the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (gpcb) which found that the units were disposing waste without treating them.
The report said that the discharge of the untreated effluents had resulted in higher concentrations of sulphide and phenol compounds which might have also led to a large number of fish deaths in the nearby Damanganga river. Large quantities of hazardous industrial and municipal solid waste are being dumped into the river, the report said.
The units which were served the order include multi-crore pesticide and chemical industries like United Phosphorous, Mitsu Ltd, Search Chem, and Ankur Agrochem. At least 14 of these units have had their water and drainage connections disconnected and the rest have been given notice to explain their actions.
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