New Delhi, The Supreme Court has directed the Rajasthan government to formulate a comprehensive policy for providing financial assistance to industrial units seeking to establish Zero Liquid Discharge plants.
Observing that the state must share responsibility for addressing industrial pollution in the Jojari-Luni-Bandi river system, a bench of Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta further directed the state to consider applications from industrial units seeking financial assistance for setting up ZLD plants and associated pipeline networks on a case-to-case basis until the proposed policy is formulated.
Such applications must be examined through proper technical appraisal and verification, with decisions taken expeditiously," it said in a recent order.
The bench issued the directions while hearing suo motu proceedings concerning pollution in the Jojari-Luni-Bandi river system, which has severely affected the environment and the lives of approximately 20 lakh people.
"The State of Rajasthan shall formulate a comprehensive policy for extending financial assistance to industrial units desirous of establishing ZLD plants," the bench directed.
It said pending the formulation of the policy, applications for financial assistance should be considered individually after due technical scrutiny and verification.
It also directed the Rajasthan government to take necessary steps to establish an appropriate redistribution pipeline network for the conveyance and reuse of treated waste water and reverse osmosis permeate.
The network is intended to facilitate optimum utilisation of treated water by industrial units and minimise the discharge of untreated or inadequately treated effluents into the river system, it said.
{{/usCountry}}The network is intended to facilitate optimum utilisation of treated water by industrial units and minimise the discharge of untreated or inadequately treated effluents into the river system, it said.
{{/usCountry}}The state has been asked to assess the technical and financial requirements for establishing the pipeline network and prepare a time-bound implementation plan.
The directions came in the wake of concerns expressed by the High-Level Ecosystem Oversight Committee over the inadequate progress in establishing and augmenting Common Effluent Treatment Plants and ZLD facilities in the industrial clusters of Jodhpur, Pali and Balotra.
The committee observed that administrative assurances and projected completion timelines could not substitute for adequate treatment capacity commensurate with the volume of industrial effluent being generated.
While acknowledging the proposed 4 MLD ZLD facility at Jodhpur as an immediate remedial measure, it underlined that the facility alone would not meet the broader objective of achieving complete Zero Liquid Discharge.
It accordingly recommended that the CETP Trust, Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board and the State government ensure 100 per cent ZLD compliance at CETP Sangaria, Jodhpur, within a stipulated timeframe.
The Committee also called for effective monitoring of all CETP and ZLD projects, periodic reporting of their physical progress and clear accountability for delays to ensure that adequate treatment infrastructure is created without further slippage.
During the proceedings, Justice Mehta had made it clear that the state could not shift the entire responsibility for restoring the polluted rivers onto industries and municipal bodies, particularly when government authorities themselves had allegedly failed to discharge their regulatory obligations.
"For reviving the industries and for establishing these ZLD plants, the state has to cough up something. That is a part of the polluter pays principle. You are equally responsible for the pollution," Justice Mehta had observed during the hearing.
"Ultimately, the polluter pays principle will apply equally to the State as well as to the industries. So, as the State and its officials have apparently failed to discharge their obligations, we'll cast the first burden on the state now," Justice Mehta had said.
The matter has been listed for further hearing on November 27.
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