GRAP violations: Rs 37 L penalty imposed in Palwal, Faridabad

The ongoing drive against violations under Stage IV of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) has resulted in penalties exceeding Rs 37 lakh within the civic limits of Palwal and Faridabad over the past 48 hours. Palwal has taken the lead, issuing challans worth Rs 27.5 lakh.

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Following inspections and checks, construction work at 95 sites has been halted. In Palwal city and district, challans were issued against two sites over the last two days, according to officials.

The Regional Office of the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), which had imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on the National Highways Authority of India on Wednesday, has also imposed fines totalling Rs 12 lakh for violations involving the handling and disposal of construction and demolition waste since the commencement of GRAP Stage IV. This phase prohibits construction activities on plots measuring 500 sq m or more. Out of 190 sites inspected, two were found to be non-compliant.

Similarly, inspections at 44 industrial sites in Palwal revealed one site violating norms, resulting in a fine of Rs 10 lakh. Additionally, fines totalling Rs 5.25 lakh were imposed on three diesel generator sets found flouting rules, and penalties amounting to Rs 27,000 were levied for 19 incidents of open waste or garbage burning within the civic limits.

In Faridabad, penalties imposed by the Municipal Corporation of Faridabad (MCF) in the past two days have surpassed Rs 10 lakh. Forty teams inspected 650 construction sites, of which 92 were found violating norms, leading to significant penalties. In addition to construction-related violations, 168 challans were issued in the past 48 hours for various activities like usage of polythene (49) dumping of garbage (45), burning of waste (52) illegal meat shops (8) and two challans each for running illegal dairies and resorting to open defecation within the civic limits.

Palwal district alone saw additional fines of Rs 7 lakh during this period for similar violations.

Palwal Deputy Commissioner Dr Harish Vashisth emphasised the continued commitment to curbing pollution. He noted that Palwal’s Air Quality Index (AQI) has been comparatively better, averaging around 100, while neighbouring Faridabad recorded an average AQI of 289 at 3 pm today.