PPCB rejects the mill’s claim that it was forced to store molasses in an unsecure underground tank due to government pressure.
Chandigarh: A week after 10,000 litres of molasses flowed into the Beas river from the Chadha Sugar Mill in Gurdaspur causing widespread ecological damage, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) Thursday fined the mill management Rs 5 crore.
The sugar mill which was shut down on 17 May, a day after the spillage, will remain closed, said a PPCB order issued Thursday evening. Holding the mill’s management responsible for the spillage, the PPCB also ordered initiation of criminal proceedings against the concerned persons after investigation.
The PPCB also shut down the molasses and grain based distilleries as well as the Adie Broswon brewery adjoining the sugar mill till further orders. All these units are run by the same set of owners.
“An environment catastrophe has occurred. The Beas is the only living river of Punjab and any damage to this river has to be viewed very seriously,” PPCB chairman Kahan Singh Pannu said in the order. “The ecological degradation will take years to regenerate. The mill management should have paid more attention to the mill’s installation and security as it is situated right next to the river bed which is an environmentally sensitive zone,” said Pannu.
PPCB rejected the mill’s claim that it was forced to store molasses in an unsecure underground tank because it was under pressure from the government to crush large quantities of sugarcane. “Any pressure to crush more sugarcane does not justify the management’s decision to store additional molasses in an unscientific manner,” said Pannu.
This is the first time that the PPCB has fined any industry this large an amount for causing pollution. Pannu said the amount will be used restoration of Beas ecology including rejuvenation of aquatic life according to a five year action plan.
“Criminal prosecution against the persons responsible shall be filed in the court of law under various sections of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 by the concerned environmental engineer of PPCB,” concluded Pannu’s order.
The board had asked a three-member committee to probe the spill caused due to a blast in the molasses storage tank inside the mill last Wednesday. The committee submitted its report on 22 May. The sugar mill management was given a hearing Wednesday.
Meanwhile, PTI reported that heeding the plea by Punjab’s Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs, led by leader of opposition Sukhpal Khaira, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) Thursday ordered a joint inspection of the river by Central Pollution Control Board and the PPCB teams and submit a report.
Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh also constituted a high-powered committee under environment minister O.P. Soni to give recommendations for cleaning all the rivers in the state and ensure clean drinking water. The committee has been asked to submit its report within 10 days.
The sugar mill is owned by, among others, Jasdeep Kaur Chadha, a prominent liquor contractor of Punjab. She is related to Paramjit Sarna, a religious adviser to chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh. The opposition has alleged that the state government was not taking any action against the mill.