Panel formed to suggest measures for cleaning of rivers

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today constituted a high-powered committee under the chairmanship of Environment Minister O P Soni to suggest measures for cleaning of the state's rivers.

The committee, which has been also tasked with suggesting ways to ensure supply of clean potable water, has been asked to submit its report within 10 days, said an official spokesperson.

He said the chief secretary has been directed by the chief minister to work out modalities for making funds available for this gigantic project.

The chief minister also asked the Managing Director, Water Supply and Sewerage Board, to give a detailed presentation on the cleaning of Buddha Nullah in Ludhiana, besides focusing on the causes of water pollution due to excessive discharge of industrial waste and effluents.

Singh also underlined the need to study the reasons for water pollution due to reckless flow of effluents from leather tanneries into Kala Sangian drain in Jalandhar district.

On a request by Soni, the chief minister asked Managing Director Water Supply and Sewerage Board to take inputs from the Commissioners of Municipal Corporations of Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Amritsar for cleaning of river waters and provision of safe drinking water to the people.

It was decided that on the basis of this exercise, a comprehensive time bound action plan would be prepared for cleaning of river Sutlej, Beas and Ravi in a holistic manner.

The chief minister underscored the need to immediately make all the Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETP) in Ludhiana functional and asked the PPCB to monitor the progress in this regard on regular basis.

He also asked the Chairman PPCB to ensure installation of ETPs in all the industrial units, especially of dying, textile and leather, as per the requisite norms and parameters.

Giving further details of the meeting, the spokesperson said PPCB Chairman Kahan Singh Pannu apprised the chief minister about the punitive action against Chadha Sugar Mill on the 'principle of polluter pays' for molasses leakage incident.

The Chairman said that the mill had not only violated the provisions of the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, but also the East Punjab Molasses (Control) Act, 1948 and the Factories Act, 1948, according to the spokesperson.

The storage arrangements for the molasses were neither approved by the Excise Commissioner nor were these made as per the requirements of the Molasses Act, the spokesman said.