The Planning Commission, which is keen to include environmental performance as a parameter in the criteria for the allocation of Central assistance, devised a model last year to build an Environmental Performance Index of various states. Punjab was down at the 27th spot, barely escaping being the bottom of the pile.

Another dubious distinction for the state is that it figures among states with the lowest forest cover. Against the national policy of having at least 33 per cent of the land area under forests, Punjab has only 5.1 per cent.

There is, thus, little doubt that Punjab’s environmental ecosystem is highly disturbed. And the ruling political class has to take the blame for that, as environment depends heavily on policy. The SAD-BJP government, despite taking certain initiatives, failed to tackle certain larger issues related to pollution.

EFFLUENT EFFECT

Pollution generated by industries remained a major issue throughout the government’s tenure. Even as rivers received heavy dose of effluents, affecting vast areas downstream, the only sewage treatment plant (STP) set up in the entire Malwa region was in Ludhiana. Of the five big cities — Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Bathinda and Patiala — only the first two have partially working STPs. A rivulet carries the entire sewage of Amritsar city into Pakistan.

The government failed to fulfil its manifesto promise of making all major rivers free of effluents by November 30, 2011. “It hurts me when I see toxic effluents flowing into the Kala Sanghian, Budha Nullah and other drains. Even the treatment plant set up at the Leather Complex in Jalandhar at a cost of Rs 19 crore is not functioning properly,” Baba Balbir Singh Seechewal, a noted environmentalist, said.

Of the 137 municipal towns and cities, there was a programme to install municipal-waste STPs in 50, at an estimated cost of Rs 2,300 crore, which was to be given by the Centre. The process has been set in motion, though much remains to be accomplished. Most of these towns are located close to the Sutlej or the Beas river, the polluted waters of which have remained a major environmental concern.

Another Rs 3,000 crore is required to cover the remaining towns and cities. Earlier, towns had income from octroi, which was abolished years ago. Alternative funds under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission could not come as the SAD-BJP government did not impose water and sewer charges and property tax on certain sections of society, as required under the scheme.

There is 4,200 tonne of solid waste generated in various towns and cities of the state. For its scientific handling, the government proposed to divide the state into eight clusters to gather, segregate, process and dispose of the waste. The process of acquiring land at eight places to set up dumping grounds was also completed. However, the scheme could not be implemented owing to lack of will on the part of the government, which failed to convince a section of sanitation employees that their jobs would not be threatened by the handing over of waste collection to contractors.

The Un-Green Revolution

Industry is the first to be blamed for pollution. However, in Punjab, which has only a modest industrial base, a major part of the total pollution comes from agriculture.

The Green Revolution, with its concept of heavy use of fertilisers, pesticides, and other chemicals, has caused a serious imbalance in the environment. To raise levels of production, farmers often indulge in injudicious use of such inputs, the use of which in the state is almost double the national average.

The spray of pesticides on crops has hit hard the population of common birds and wild animals, such as peacock, sparrow and fox.

Traces of pesticide are also found in humans, especially in southern Punjab, which is more affected by this menace. Food grains are also affected. Presence of uranium beyond the acceptable limit has been found in subsoil water. There is a strong suspicion that the presence of toxic substances in the subsoil water is responsible for the high incidence of cancer, especially in the Malwa belt.

However, there has been no sustained effort on the part of the state government to educate farmers on judicious use of chemicals.

Besides chemicals, burning of paddy stubble in the farms is another major source of air pollution. Every year, about 20 million tonne of paddy residue is left behind after the crop is harvested. Of this, only about 1 million tonne is used as fuel in “co-generation” plants to produce electricity. The remaining is set on fire by farmers during October-November, triggering breathing problems in a large section of the population.

A few months back, the Punjab Pollution Control Board forwarded a draft for a Bill to ban the burning of paddy residue. However, there has been no response to it from the government, which fears a negative response from the farming community. Many experts say this fear is unfounded.