No plans for environment safety

Despite a central pollution control board’s restriction on fresh investment projects in the Indore industrial area, the Madhya Pradesh government is yet to chalk out an action plan to ensure environment safety.

Last month the Ministry of Forests & Environment had issued a notification to put certain industrial towns under critically polluted category. Among these, Indore surfaced as one of the critically polluted industrial areas with 71.26 Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index. The other towns which figured on the list are Dewas (68.77), Pithampur (65.09) and Gwalior (55.12). As of now, the ministry has put Indore under restriction for fresh months for a period of eight months till August 2010.

If a timely action is not taken by the state government, fresh investment activities like metallurgical industries (ferrous and non-ferrous), cement plants, asbestos milling, chlor-alkali industry, soda ash industry, chemical fertilisers, pesticide industry, man-made fibre, synthetic organic chemicals, distilleries, integrated paint industry, pulp and paper industry, sugar industry, induction or arc furnace industry, industrial estates and parks, special economic zones, bio-tech parks and leather complexes, common hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities, highways, aerial rope-ways, airports, common effluent treatment plants, common municipal solid waste, building and construction projects, township and area development projects will come to a grinding halt.

According to a state government source, “The government has yet to take action in this regard, although Indore is on the least priority as investment destination, barring special economic zone in Pithampur. Other investment areas like Katni, Satna, Singrauli and Jabalpur will largely be affected if the Union ministry of forests and environment takes tough actions after eight months.”

Singrauli, a newly formed district in Madhya Pradesh is looking up for fresh investment of more than 50,000 crore in few big-ticket power and manufacturing projects, while its other part in Uttar Pradesh is already on the list of critically polluted areas.

The restriction on consideration of projects from critically polluted clusters or areas is effective till August this year during which the state pollution control board will have to finalise a time bound action plan for improving environmental quality in these areas.