PCMC files FIR against laundry owner for polluting Pavana

PCMC on Tuesday lodged a police complaint against a laundry owner from Chinchwad for allegedly discharging untreated, contaminated water into the Pavana river

PUNE: The Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) on Tuesday lodged a police complaint against a laundry owner from Chinchwad for allegedly discharging untreated, contaminated water into the Pavana River despite the ban on polluting rivers.

PCMC on Tuesday lodged a police complaint against a laundry owner from Chinchwad for allegedly discharging untreated, contaminated water into the Pavana river (in pic). (HT)

An FIR was lodged at Chinchwad police station against Swapnil Sase, owner of Vignaharta Laundry and Dry Cleaning, Chinchwad, by Amol Gorkhe, health inspector of the PCMC environment department. An inspection carried out at the unit found untreated, contaminated water released directly into the river.

Senior inspector Krushnadeo Kharade, attached to Chinchwad police station, said that PCMC staff filed the complaint against the accused for violating environmental norms and the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act. Sase was booked under relevant sections of the Environmental Protection Act 1986 and Municipal Corporation Act.

The issue came to light after PCMC received a complaint from MP Shrirang Barne on July 16 regarding pollution in the Pavana River near Kejudevi Bandara. Illegal discharge of untreated, contaminated water was causing foaming in the river, he said.

Sanjay Kulkarni, head of the environment department of the PCMC, said that during the investigation, they found Sase’s unit polluting the river that caused a layer of toxic foam to float on the surface of the river near Kejudevi Bandara over the last few days. “The reason behind the foaming is usually the presence of phosphates from detergents. Phosphates in detergents can lead to freshwater algal blooms that release toxins and deplete oxygen in waterways,” he said.