Prevent discharge of effluents from industries into Ghaggar, minister tells PPCB officials

Satinder Pal Singh

Dera Bassi, June 6

Expressing concern over pollution in the Ghaggar near Bhankarpur village, Dera Bassi, Punjab Environment Minister OP Soni here on Wednesday had directed officials of the PPCB to take steps to prevent discharge of effluents from the industries into the river.

He said the activities of spilling out industrial residue into the water resources would not be tolerated in any cost.

Monitoring the situation, along with other officials of the Punjab Pollution Control Board, the Cabinet Minister also instructed the officers to constitute teams for regular checking of industrial units from releasing their toxic waste into the Ghaggar so that effective measures could be taken accordingly to combat the menace at the earliest. He added that if any industry does not follow government instructions, then strict action would be taken against them.

The minister asked the officers to ensure that treatment plants in every industrial unit should be run regularly and reactivate old treatment plants so that water could be well treated before putting into rivers.

Expressing grave concern over contaminated and untreated water being thrown by the industries of Chandigarh and Haryana into Ghaggar, he said the Punjab Government would soon write for jointly putting up an effective monitoring mechanism in place for cleaning the river.

He said it had been brought to his notice that sewerage waste was being discharged into rivulets and drains which later joined the Ghaggar.

Reiterating his government’s commitment to ensuring a clean environment, the minister said throwing of waste into the rivers by the industries would not be acceptable. adding that the state government would not leave any stone unturned to ensure a clean environment in the state.

Soni said the all industries owe equal responsibility to check the contamination of water resources. Hence, they must ensure that industrial residue and untreated water was not being discharged into the water bodies.

He urged the people to make their contribution in preventing pollution. He said he would soon visit all rivers and streams of the state to check the ground reality of water contamination.