Carcass plant still not operational, Ludhiana MC to pay ₹8 lakh fine
The plant was to be completed and put into use by August 31, 2020. Once it starts running, the plant will help dispose of the bodies of dead animals in a scientific manner.
The Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) has slapped an environmental compensation of ₹8 lakh on the Ludhiana municipal corporation for its failure to operationalise a modern and scientific carcass disposal plant at Noorpur Bet within the set deadline.
The plant was to be completed and put into use by August 31, 2020. Once it starts running, the plant will help dispose of the bodies of dead animals in a scientific manner. At present, the carcasses are disposed off on the banks of Satluj river. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has already raised objections against the practice.
Disposal of carcasses had become a major concern for the MC last year when the PPCB had imposed a fine of ₹2.28 lakh each on the five groups running a hadda rodi (carcass dump) in Laddowal area for dumping waste into Sutlej.
A monitoring committee, constituted by the NGT, had visited the plant on February 27 last year and observed that about 45% the construction work on the carcass plant was complete. The committee members were assured that rest of the work will be completed by February 2021. When the committee members visited the plant again in March this year, it found that the plant was not operational yet. The committee members stated, in their report, that the work on the effluent treatment plant at the site had also been completed but it wasn’t operational. The MC was to all undertake tree plantation at the site to control the stench but it had failed to do so.
The report in this regard was submitted to the PPCB, which imposed an environmental compensation of ₹8 lakh upon the MC on April 13.
Despite repeated attempts, municipal corporation (MC) commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal was not available for comments. Mayor Balkar Singh Sandhu said he, along with cabinet minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu, had visited the site twice to check the progress on the project. “I will speak to the officials supervising the project and seek a detailed review in the matter,” said the mayor.