Bulk drug units had the last laugh
Citizens too have not done their bit to free our waterbodies of pollution
While the issue of pollution in the state has become a topic of international research, the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board, the premier watchdog body, has been rendered toothless as a consequence of political pressure, apathy of the bureaucracy and ignorance on the part of the public.
Even though the Board initiated action against various polluting industries, this was not taken to its logical conclusion. For example, the case of the bulk drug units. APPCB had earlier ordered these units, which were found to be emitting polluting effluents, to be closed down. These units were alleged to have violated the Supreme Court order that was issued after the Joint Action Plan of the Central Pollution Control Board and APPCB, a ban notification from the state government and the Appellate Authority order. But the state government is now reportedly planning to not only lift the ban, but also allow the units to manufacture in quantities and numbers in excess of what has been approved by the APPCB.
The dimensions of the damage caused by fire that broke out in the chemical reactor at Nagarjuna Agrichem Limited at Srikakulam on June 30 has never been assessed with respect to the volatile organophos- phate compounds released by the pesticides stored in the factory and inhaled by the workers, fire fighters and those in the vicinity. Even though the APPCB sent blood samples of some of those exposed for testing, it did not follow the rules to the letter. As such, the exercise was mere eyewash.
Visakhapatnam and its bowl area was known for its polluting industries for the past many years and had entered the ‘critically-polluted’ category. Years on, it is still on the ‘critically-polluted’ list with no effort made to clean up the area.
Citizens too have not done their bit to free our water bodies from pollution. Hotels, resorts, pubs, restaurants, fast food units etc. should be made answerable for the manner in which they disposed off the waste and effluents they generated.
Though the advantages of using clay Ganesh idols for immersion during the Ganesh Chaturthi had been widely advertised, people continued to use nonbiodegradable idols coloured with paints containing heavy metals.
The APPCB itself is guilty of not shutting down illegal electroplating industries in Hyderabad that are discharging more harmful heavy metals daily into the Hussainsagar. It has not been able to shift these industries out of the city.
The Banjara lake has also been reduced to a swamp with solid waste and sewerage effluents flowing directly into it. The situation has worsened last year because of Water Board’s clumsy construction of intervention and diversion network that do not work in spite of spending crores of public funds. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has also sanctioned construction work in the lake bed in total violation of the WALTA Act and Supreme Court directives.
APPCB has so far failed to take any action against these erring government agencies, though it has carried out on-site inspections in the presence of civil society members and acknowledged that the pollution does exist.