SDO, aide arrested for graft

Tribune News Service

Faridkot, October 19

Sleuths of the Vigilance Bureau on Friday arrested Atul Kaushal, a sub-divisional officer (SDO) with the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), Faridkot, and his associate for allegedly taking bribery from rice-millers, schools and other industrial units in Farikdot and Kotkapura.

According to Vigilance SSP Ashok Baath, the accused SDO and his associate were collecting money from every rice-miller and school at Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 per unit to give them clean chit and no-objection certificate regarding pollution control.

Jarnail Singh, SDO’s private associate, was acting as a facilitator in fixing the bribe amount between the SDO and rice-millers and schools, the SSP said.

It is alleged that as a large number of private schools and rice-millers are not adhering to the PPCB norms, the SDO was receiving bribe from them to ignore violations of rules and regulations.

Instead of using pollution control technologies to treat waste, the rice-millers were allegedly paying bribe to the SDO and allowing the contamination of water and air.

Some of these industrial units have spoiled the water in their areas, leaving the residents of those localities in a lurch.

Producing toxic waste, these industries contaminated the groundwater due to improper handling and storage of industrial waste, said Ashok Baath.

The Vigilance Bureau has registered a criminal case under Section 7 and 7-A of the Prevention of corruption Act against Atul Kaushik and Jarnail Singh.