MoEFCC, while issuing the environmental clearance for 660MW new units of Koradi plant had made installation of a flue gas desulphuriser (FGD) mandatory. FGD is necessary to reduce sulphur dioxide (SO2) level in power plant emissions. High level of SO2 in atmosphere leads to acid rain. Mahagenco has sought time till December 2017 to install an FGD or an alternative device.

Commenting on the appeal, a senior Mahagenco official said, "Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has measured SO2 levels in Koradi and its adjoining areas. It is well within prescribed limits. Indian coal does not contain much sulphur and hence SO2 levels are not very high. FGD is an expensive equipment and costs about Rs400 crore. You have to use limestone and gypsum in it and it also consumes a lot of water. In fact the FGD causes a lot of pollution. At present FGD has been installed only by NTPC in Vindhyachal power plant and its performance is not satisfactory."

The official however, said that in view of the new pollution control norms issued by MoEFCC in December 2015, the company would install equipments to reduce SO2 emissions. "FGD is one of the options. Research is going on for developing other type of equipments. We will take a call later. These equipments would be installed not only in Koradi but other power plants as well. Other generation companies too will have to install these equipments," he added.

While the state government has failed in bringing down power generation rates of Mahagenco, it is compromising with pollution control to prevent Mahagenco's tariff from going up further. FGD was mandatory for Koradi's new unit but Mahagenco was not willing to incur an additional expenditure of Rs400 crore. The state energy ministry approached chief minister DevendraFadnavis urging him to get the requirement of installing FGD waived off. The CM shockingly agreed and wrote a letter to the then environment minister Prakash Javadekar in this regard on July 8, 2015.