The recovery of Environmental Compensation (EC) imposed upon the environmental norms violators by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has become a herculean task for the officials of the pollution control board.
The HSPCB, Panipat Regional Office, in a reply to an environmentalist, said that it has imposed an EC upon a total 89 commercial institutions, including textile industries, builders, liquor factory, IOCL refinery, brick kilns, dyeing units, national fertilizer, Panipat Thermal Power Station, ready-mix concrete plants, banquet halls, JBM Environment company- a private company involved in collecting garbage in the city, unnamed bleach houses and even an official of Public Health Department.
The HSPCB said a total EC of Rs 55.28 crore has been imposed upon the commercial units for violating the environmental norms.
Out of a total EC of Rs 55.28 crore, the HSPCB has recovered a total Rs 6.95 crore, which is merely a 12.58 percent only of the total EC amount. An amount of Rs 48.28 crore is yet to be recovered from the commercial institutions so far, the reply said.
According to the data, the HSPCB has imposed the highest EC on National Fertilizers for violation of environmental norms which was 35.84 crores but the EC was not deposited so far. Similarly, an EC of Rs 1.79 crore on Ansal Builders but it has deposited only Rs 5 lakh so far; the board has imposed 5.47 crore EC on TDI Infra but not deposited, Rs 1.15 crores EC was imposed on Panipat Thermal Power Station (PTPS) but not deposited, Rs 6.20 lakh EC imposed on SDE, Public Health Department but not deposited; Rs 1.96 crore EC was imposed on a RMC plant but not deposited. A total of 26 commercial institutions on which EC was imposed but they did not deposit the environmental fine to the pollution control board so far.
Varun Gulati, an environmentalist, said the pollution control board is very keen to impose EC upon the violators, it is good, but what about the recovery. It is very unfortunate that the recovery rate of EC is only 12.58 percent, which is even less than 25 percent.
Crores of rupees were pending not only on industrialists, builders and other private players but also on the government departments, he added.
The HSPCB should have to take a serious step to recover the pending EC amount from the defaulters, Environmentalist Gulati demanded. The pollution control board had to collect the EC on priority and spend this amount for the restoration of the environment to provide neat and clean water, land and air to the residents, he said.
