23 ready mix concrete plants violate pollution norms, face Rs 1.90-cr fine

A total of 23 ready mix concrete (RMC) plants — 17 in Panipat district and six in Karnal district — have been found violating pollution norms near Dadlana village, close to the Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) refinery. The violations were revealed in a joint inspection report by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) and the district administration, conducted on the directions of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

The HSPCB has served closure notices to all the RMC plants and recommended an environmental compensation of Rs 1.90 crore on 19 plants — 14 in Panipat and five in Karnal.

The inspections were initiated following a complaint by Deepak, a resident of Dadlana village, who had approached the NGT on January 30, 2023. The complaint alleged that several construction companies had illegally set up RMC plants on agricultural land to supply concrete for civil work at IOCL’s KP-25 project.

According to the petition, the plants were extracting groundwater illegally without permission from the authorities and emitting excessive dust, leading to severe air pollution and health hazards for local residents.

Following the complaint, the NGT constituted a joint committee, including the District Magistrate, HSPCB, and CPCB, to investigate the matter.

The committee identified 23 RMC plants operating in the area, out of which only two plants had obtained Consent to Operate (CTO) from HSPCB. The remaining 21 plants had been established without obtaining Consent to Establish (CTE) and were operating without CTO.

16 RMCs in Panipat and five in Karnal were found illegally extracting groundwater without permission. The plants were set up on agricultural land without obtaining change of land use (CLU) certificates.

The committee confirmed that the RMC plants were responsible for air and water pollution, validating the allegations made in the complaint.

In response to these violations, the HSPCB has issued closure notices to the defaulting RMC plants and recommended an environmental compensation of Rs 1.90 crore — Rs 1.40 crore for 14 RMCs in Panipat and Rs 50 lakh for five RMCs in Karnal.