Report on the operation of Ajay Gelatine, Zirakpur, SAS Nagar, Punjab, 24/09/2020
Report by the Chief Secretary, Government of Punjab in compliance of National Green Tribunal order of September 25, 2019 i the matter of Escon Arena Apartment Owners Association Vs Punjab Pollution Control Board & Others.
The matter related to the allegation of an industry - Ajay Gelatine Pvt. Ltd. functioning for 28 years without consent to operate and without due regard to such illegality and - also without considering the siting criteria and the master plan, further consent to operate has been given.
The Punjab Pollution Control Board in its report has said that the industrial unit in question came into existence in the year 1986 in the revenue estate of village Nagla, tehsil Dera Bassi. At that time, no specific guidelines were framed by the SPCB for the establishment of such units. Therefore, no objection certificate (NOC) with respect to pollution was granted to the industrial unit on September 15, 1986 by the Punjab Pollution Control Board. At that time, Zirakpur was a small village, which was later declared and notified as a municipal area and Municipal Council, Zirakpur came into existence in the year 2001, nearly 15 years after the establishment of the industrial unit.
After the forming of the Municipal Council of Zirakpur, a lot of construction relating to housing projects started in the area. Subsequently, the Master Plan of Zirakpur was notified on November 13, 2009 by the Department of Town and Country Planning, wherein the area of village Nagla, wherein the industry is situated, was demarcated as a residential zone. The industry being an existing unit, was spot zoned in the revised master plan of Zirakpur by the District Town Planner, SAS Nagar. Therefore, no illegality is noted, with respect to the operation of the industry, in terms of its location and siting.
The report added that the distance between the industrial unit and the group housing project (Escon Arena) was more than 100 meters. Also, the industry was granted a consent to operate on January 28, 2019 after it installed the necessary effluent treatment plant and air pollution control device, as well as made arrangements for the disposal of the treated effluent onto land for plantation and irrigation. The effluent/stack emission sampling has been carried out, which revealed that the industry was achieving effluent and stack emission targets.
However, to control the issue of foul odour, the industry was asked by the Board to take requisite remedial measures. The industry has deposited an amount of Rs. 5,85,000 on March 11, 2020 against environmental compensation in compliance of the direction of the PPCB.