The Manesar Industrial Area has emerged as Haryana’s biggest industrial air pollution hotspot, with the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) identifying it as the state’s worst offending cluster in a comprehensive survey that found 2,912 air-polluting industrial units across 14 districts.
The survey has also revealed that 470 factories are still operating without mandatory Air Pollution Control Devices (APCDs), despite repeated directions to install them.
The findings assume greater significance for Gurugram, whose air quality remains among the country’s worst. During winter, PM2.5 levels routinely exceed 150 micrograms per cubic metre – far above the WHO’s recommended safe limit of 5 micrograms per cubic metre. Vehicular emissions on the Delhi-Jaipur Expressway, large-scale construction activity and industrial emissions from the Manesar-Bawal belt together contribute significantly to the city’s pollution burden.
The HSPCB survey has also uncovered illegal industrial units functioning in residential and non-conforming areas around Gurugram and Manesar, where rapid urbanisation has blurred the distinction between industrial and residential zones. The report has been submitted to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), with June 30 fixed as the deadline for completing inspections across all NCR districts.
According to the survey, 1,349 industries are required to install Online Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (OCEMS), which transmit real-time emission data directly to the CPCB server. While 1,286 units have complied, 63 industries are yet to connect their systems.
The Board also found that of the 986 industries mandated to install Air Pollution Control Devices, only 516 have complied, leaving 470 units in violation of environmental norms.
To bridge the compliance gap, the HSPCB has prepared a phased implementation plan under which 68 units will install pollution control devices in June, 84 in July, 104 in August and the remaining 214 by September.
The survey further identified five clusters of industries operating in non-conforming areas, covering 56 units. Inspections conducted between January and April this year resulted in the closure of 36 units, while the remaining 20 were shut down in May.
Senior HSPCB officials said industries continuing to violate environmental norms would face closure orders and legal action. The remaining 63 industries yet to connect their online monitoring systems to the CPCB server have also been directed to comply before the end of June.
Officials said the enforcement drive has become critical as Gurugram’s air quality deteriorates sharply between November and January, when temperature inversion traps pollutants near the surface and stubble-burning emissions from neighbouring districts further worsen pollution levels.
