Bijnor: Barred from dumping water into tributaries of the Ganga, paper mills and distilleries in Bijnor district are now dumping effluents into sugarcane fields. Due to a lack of awareness about the harmful effects of waste water on their crop, farmers do not object to the practice. According to experts, the chemical-laced water seeping into the ground will severely impact its fertility.
There are four distilleries and two paper mills in the district. Each industrial unit discharges 40,000 to 50,000 litres of effluents every day. TOI had reported in January that some industrial units in the district continued the discharge of untreated effluents into tributaries of the Ganga and nullahs despite an order of the Pollution Control Board (PCB) banning it. There are more than a dozen tributaries and nullahs in Bijnor district. Most of the industrial units are situated on or near these nullahs. There are 21 units in the district and they are releasing their chemical-laced water into these tributaries and nullahs which flow into the Ganga.
Rajendra Singh, state secretary of the BhartiyaKisan Union (BKU), said, "Since NGT became strict about the dumping of industrial waste into the Ganga, these industrialists now dump water into sugarcane fields. Farmers are gullible and industrialists use that to their advantage. They lie to farmers and say that this waste water would make their land more fertile. We have been holding several meetings and trying to make farmers more aware. This water ruins the soil's fertility and also kills earthworms. It even creates health hazards for farmers and their families."
Meanwhile, the administration plans to identify such units and send notices. District cane officer OP Singh said, "I am aware of the problem and we are acting on it. In Fatehpur village, I got complaints of the sugarcane crop getting badly damaged due to the use of contaminated water. We will identify the industrial units and send notices to them. In the meantime, we have asked farmers not to use this water to irrigate their fields."
AK Tiwari, PCB's regional officer in Bijnor, however, claimed that industrialists treat the water before taking it to the fields. "It is true that this water is being dumped in fields, but industrialists have been treating the water. Farmers use it as fertilizer."
Experts, however, said use of effluents for irrigation can severely impact health of both land as well as human beings depended on it. Ashok Kumar, a soil scientist and professor at Meerut-based SardarVallabhai Patel University of Agriculture, said, "While it is true that discharge from industrial units may have some mineral value, we shouldn't allow them to dump this water without being monitored. In excess, this can cause lasting damage to both the soil quality and the groundwater reserve. At the university level, we are conducting research on this and are trying to calculate a permissible limit of industrial discharge in agricultural fields. The concentration and dosage are key factors and that is why it cannot be allowed to go unchecked. However, we should also come up with an alternate waste water disposal system."
He added, "In excess amount, this water is also extremely harmful to people's health. There is a debate among scientists about whether or not some of the heavy metals present in industrial waste water can cause cancer and kidney-related diseases."
