Gurugram builders penalised for not meeting treated water norms

It was found that the treated water had a high pH level and exceeded the prescribed limit of suspended solids, oil and grease.

The Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has served notices to five private builders in the city for not meeting the standards of treated sewage water used for watering plants and other horticultural purposes within the premises of their buildings. It was found that the treated water had a high pH level and exceeded the prescribed limit of suspended solids, oil and grease.

The Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has served notices to five private builders in the city for not meeting the standards of treated sewage water used for watering plants and other horticultural purposes within the premises of their buildings. (Parveen Kumar/Hindustan Times)

The regional office of the Board in compliance with the HSPCB order will implement the “polluter pays” principle to recover environmental compensation from the polluting units and use it for the restoration of environmental damages. The regional office has calculated the compensation fee to be paid by these builders, although it is yet to be approved by the HSPCB’s headquarters in Panchkula.

Kuldeep Singh, regional officer, HSPCB, said, “Water samples from the buildings were collected and sent for a laboratory test. It was found that the discharge from the treatment plants exceeded the prescribed limit, as defined by the board. We will also charge the fee as per the order passed on April 29 this year. Based on the calculation we have suggested an amount, which needs clearance from the head office.”

The report of the in-house committee of the Central Pollution Control Board on the methodology for assessing environmental compensation and action plan to utilise the fund has set the minimum environmental fee of ₹5,000 a day and a maximum of ₹10,000 a day for sewage treatment capacity up to 200MLD. The fee increases as per the capacity of the sewage treatment plant .