Rule tweak for ease of biz suiting polluters?

The Times of India , Thursday, October 06, 2016
Correspondent : TNN

GURGAOn: Amid fears that relaxation of environment pollution norms by the government to promote industrial units has led to an increase in pollution levels in the city, an RTI reply by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has revealed that no closure notice has been issued on any polluting industrial unit in Gurgaon till August in the current fiscal. Only three have been fined.

Of the 833 highly polluting industrial units in the city, only 4% have been shut in the last three years, according to the RTI reply. These units are in the red (highly polluting) and orange (polluting) categories. The closure notices, the RTI reply stated, were issued to only 24 units in the last three years. Of them, while 17 units were issued notices in 2014-15, seven were served the notices in 2015-16.

Also, the RTI reply stated that 31 industrial units have been fined Rs 5,000 to-Rs 2.5 lakh since 2013 but none of these have come in the current fiscal.

Significantly, during the Happening Haryana summit in Gurgaon this March, the government had announced a series of measures to improve ease of doing business.

Usual violations by polluting units, according to sources, relate to not setting up treatment plants for waste water and flouting air pollution norms.

A senior HSPCB official said the number of violations of pollution norms had come down as the rules were tweaked during the Happening Haryana summit. But pollution norms had not been compromised, he added. Also, the implementation of online registration of industrial units has led to a decline in violations, he said.

"Earlier, industrial units had to apply for registration and renewal of the licence to the board manually. Now, a majority of the procedures have been made online. That is what has led to the dip in violations, and thus penalties and closures," said the official, requesting anonymity.

Industrialists feel the relaxation offers them ease of doing business. "Online procedures ensure hassle-free registration, renewal of licence and required permissions. It has also brought down bureaucratic hurdles and offered ease of business," Praveen Yadav, president of Gurgaon Industrial Association, said.

The board had announced that every industry will get registration certificate within 90 days, while it used to take about 120 days to get the certificates.

The board has also extended the period of validity of the 'consent-to- operate' certificate. The industries that come under the red category (highly polluting) and the orange category (less polluting) will now get consent to operate for five years and 10 years,, respectively. However, the consent was earlier given for only two years to the red category and three years to the orange category. Sources in the board, however, said the government's focus is now on encouraging industries to set up in the city.

According to environmentalists, the relaxation may lead to increaseD pollution. "There are a lot of textile firms that discharge polluted water, which flows into Najafgarh drain, which is connected to Yamuna. There is a need to reconsider the revision of the norms," Sukhbir Yadav, an environmental activist, said.

 
SOURCE : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/Rule-tweak-for-ease-of-biz-suiting-polluters/articleshow/54705247.cms
 


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