After late night raid, four plastic godowns sealed

Ghaziabad: The Ghaziabad district administration late Friday conducted a surprise search at Hindon Vihar and sealed four major godowns where plastic was being stored

Ghaziabad: The Ghaziabad district administration late Friday conducted a surprise search at Hindon Vihar and sealed four major godowns where plastic was being stored and burned. The officials said the searches were conducted upon information that there have been frequent instances of plastic being burnt in the area, resulting in air pollution.

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Hindon Vihar is an irregular settlement of hundreds of small godowns and workshops, located near river Hindon, adjacent to GT Road. The area is in close proximity to the Shaheed Sthal (New Bus Adda) Metro station. The officials said that teams comprising police personnel, officials of the district administration and the UP Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) conducted the searches from midnight to 2am on Saturday.

“During the searches, we found plastic stored at four godowns. There were also signs of this waste being burnt.The four godowns were sealed immediately. We have also asked our officials to keep a check on such activities. If need be, more such searches will be conducted in order to curb pollution. It is probably for the first time that such activity has been reported from Hindon Vihar,” Dr Ajay Shankar Pandey, district magistrate, Ghaziabad, said.

The officials of the UP Pollution Control Board confirmed instances of plastic storage and burning.

“The godowns were engaged in melting plastic waste and making moulds out of it. The material so prepared is sold thereafter. In the first instance, the godowns have been sealed. In case we find the activity recurring, more stringent steps will be taken against the offenders. We are also writing to the electricity department to snap supply of such establishments. We found that the entire area has no provision of generator sets and was using electricity for all heavy work,” Utsav Sharma, regional manager, UPPCB, said.

The Hindon Vihar area is a major pollution hotspot in Ghaziabad and also a major source of air pollution due to garbage burning and processing.

“The pollution from the area affects nearby localities of Nandgram, Patel Nagar and other residential areas. The officials must conduct more checks at Hindon Vihar and effective action should be taken. The plastic storage and burning is a recurrent violation there,” Vikrant Sharma, city-based environmentalist, said.