Srinagar, Dec 31: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh Saturday granted eight weeks’ time to the Commissioner, Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) to file an affidavit indicating the steps taken for the treatment of effluents emitted by Industrial Units into a water body situated in the outskirts of Srinagar.
Hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), a division bench comprising Justices, Sanjeev Kumar and M.A Chowdhary directed SIDCO and Pollution Control Board (PCB), to file their responses on the issue.
“We would also like to have the response of the SIDCO, as well as Pollution Control Board, on the issue. They shall file their separate affidavits by the next date of hearing,” the bench said and posted the matter for hearing on April, 04, 2023.
The directions came after the court observed that the affidavit is yet to be filed by the SMC despite its direction passed on May 31, 2022.
The court granted further eight weeks time to SMC counsel, Moomin Khan after he sought more time to furnish the details.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by the inhabitants of the Hill View Colony Old Air Field Road, Wanabal Rangreth Yayil, Gagoo villages alleging that on account of the establishment of an industrial area they are facing health hazards due to discharge of effluents from the industrial units as there is no proper arrangement for treatment of the waste and effluents.
Previously, the court had directed the Irrigation and Flood Control (I&FC) Department and SMC to take steps in view of recommendations made by the PCB related to treatment of effluents emitted by Industrial Units into a water body.
The PCB through its joint report filed by its Regional Director and District Officer pointed out three deficiencies and had recommended that the Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) needs to be made operational and the treated water needs to be channelized for irrigation purposes.
The report recommended that the drains in the industrial estate are required to be cleaned and cleared regularly to ward off blockage or choking and solid waste generated within the industrial estate should be channelized to some municipal body for scientific disposal.
The court had noted that all the three jobs have to be taken care of by the SMC.
Earlier, a compliance report was filed by the PCB stating that according to the survey report about 150 industrial units exist in the area which include 03 units in Red category, 53 units in Orange category, 64 units in Green category and 22 units in White category.
It was stated in the report that a Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) is proposed to be established for the primary treatment of the effluents and the waste water discharged by these industries.
“The civil work for the construction of the said plant has been completed by the SIDCO but the mechanical part is yet to be done,” the report had said.
The court after taking the report on record had directed the PCB to file an affidavit indicating the time limit within which the proposed CETP is to be made operational and to indicate as to whether the industrial units existing in the area are being run in confirmation with the norms laid down by the PCB.
The PCB was also directed to inform the court as to when the said industrial units were established.
“The PCB may also undertake a fresh exercise to reappraise that the industrial units are in consonance with the parameters laid down by the Pollution Control Board,” the bench had directed.
