The Principal Bench of National Green Tribunal on Friday has slammed a hefty fine of 5 crores on the Mumbai Industrial Development Corporation for discharging industrial effluents, in the Taloja industrial area on the outskirts of Mumbai.
Earlier in 2018, the Principal Bench of NGT found irregularities in the operation of the Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CEPT) after inspection and directed it to pay a sum o 10 crores as compensation to the district that was affected. Looking at the failure of the CETP, a monitoring committee was formed to give time bound action plan to stop pollution of the water bodies.
Later that year, the MIDC took over the operations o CETP to stop the flow of effluent particles in the water bodies of Taloja Distrcit but soon after the take-over, NGT issues an order to close down all the industries polluting in that district, until some remedial action was taken by the necessary authorities.
Mumbai Pollution Control Board was directed to cancel the consent of operation of the industries not following the norms and effective measures to reduce pollution. MIDC and MPCB jointly submitted their report to the NGT specifying the non completion of the upgradation of CEPT the sole reason for increase in pollution in the water bodies.
On 11th September, 2019, NGT under the Water (Prevention and Control of Poluution) Act 1974, held MIDC and MPCB liable for not complying to the standards of safety and violating the orders of NGT by releasing industrial effluent in the water bodies. The NGT additionally imposed another 5 crores on MIDC as compensation and directed to stop the salaries of the CEO and Deputy CEO(MIDC) and Member Secretary (MPCB) till compliances are made with previous orders.
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