Patiala MC faces fresh Rs 6-lakh fine for environmental violations

The three-member committee constituted by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) under the super vision of National Green Tribunal (NGT) has imposed an additional Rs 6 lakh penalty on the Patiala Municipal Corporation (MC) for its failure to comply with environmental norms.

The committee comprising of Environmental Engineers Parveen Saluja, Gurkaran Singh and Dharamvir Singh have also directed the civic body to pay the remaining Rs 16 lakh of the total Rs 55 lakh penalty imposed earlier.

The total penalty levied on the Patiala MC after the latest action has now reached Rs 61 lakh, of which Rs 39 lakh has been paid so far. The outstanding amount now stands at Rs 21 lakh.

The committee has further directed the civic body to construct a boundary wall around the landfill near Sanouri Adda to prevent solid waste from spilling into the Patiala Nadi. The Punjab Pollution Control Board has also asked the civic body to increase its bio-remediation capacity.

Currently, the MC is carrying out bio-remediation of 263 metric tonne (MT) legacy waste per day, against the installed machinery capacity of 1,000 MT per day. In its submission to the NGT, the civic body stated that it would not be able to remediate the remaining 1.43 lakh MT of waste by the September 30 deadline due to the ongoing monsoon.

Moreover, the proposed compressed biogas (CBG) plant at Daudhar village is yet to be installed. The MC has also admitted to its failure in completely curbing minor fire incidents at the landfill site, although no major fire has occurred so far.

As of July 28, the city generates waste amounting to 219 tonne per day (TPD), while the processing capacity of the MC stands at 195 TPD. Of the total waste generated daily, 133 TPD is wet and 86 TPD dry.

There were initially 42 garbage collection points in the city, of which 21 have been eliminated so far. The civic body has identified three acres of land, which, once operational, will enable 100 per cent processing of the city’s solid waste.

Improper dumping of waste draws Rs 1.08 cr fine for Sirhind civic body

The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has imposed an environmental compensation of Rs 1.08 crore on the Sirhind Municipal Council (MC) for violating the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. The punitive action was initiated following a complaint filed by environmental activist Kapil Dev Arora from the Public Action Committee.

The details have emerged in the PPCB’s report to National Green Tribunal (NGT). The compensation order was issued after a detailed hearing on the complaint regarding unscientific and unauthorised waste dumping practices by the civic body.

The NGT directed the civic body to deposit the compensation amount after findings revealed that the council was dumping municipal waste at an unauthorised site, thereby flouting environmental regulations.

In his complaint, Kapil Dev Arora alleged that the MC was illegally dumping waste from Sirhind city onto the land surrounding Sukha Dariya (Hansla Nadi), a natural flood drain.

He further stated that the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) had been constructed illegally over the drain land, with no waste processing plant installed at the site. He accused the body of letting untreated garbage and burnt waste enter the water stream, resulting in serious water contamination.

Environmental Engineer Kamal Singla from its Regional Office in Fatehgarh Sahib submitted his report in November last year, wherein Singla noted that the dump site is located merely 50 feet from the edge of Hansla Nadi, while the MRF is situated about 110 feet away.

The report highlighted several lapses including the Municipal Council has not provided a designated Sanitary Landfill (SLF) site, there is no boundary wall or gated access to the dumping site and mandatory green belt around the site’s perimeter has not been developed.

During inspections, large piles of waste were found adjacent to the Sirhind drain, formerly known as the Hansla Nadi—a water body of historical significance.

In the reported it was observed that waste was being pushed closer to the river, with concerns that some of it might be entering the water channel, particularly under the cover of night. Incidents of waste burning at the site were also recorded.

In their joint inspection report submitted earlier on April 30 earlier this year, a team comprising of PPCB environmental engineers Malkeet Singh, Harleen Kaur and Deshveer Singh noted that solid waste was being pushed away from the riverbanks. It was also assured to the team that the site will be cleared at the earliest. Sharing the latest visuals, Kapil Arora said pushing away of waste from the river bank was just an eyewash to mislead the pollution control body as the garbage continues to litter around the river bank.