Judgment of the Supreme Court regarding pollution caused by untreated effluents discharged by tanneries and other industries in Tamil Nadu into the Palar river, 30/01/2025
Judgment of the Supreme Court in the matter of Vellore District Environment Monitoring Committee Vs The District Collector, Vellore district & Others dated 30/01/2025.
The matter related to pollution caused by untreated effluents discharged by tanneries and other industries in Tamil Nadu into the Palar river, posing a threat to the ecosystem.
Tanneries are amongst the most polluting industries and the damage caused by them by discharging untreated or partially treated effluents into the river Palar and surrounding areas, has resulted in irreversible damage to the water bodies, groundwater, and agricultural lands said the Supreme Court (SC), January 30, 2025.
The environmental degradation has impoverished local farmers and has caused immense suffering to the local residents and the tannery workers, thereby endangering public health and life. "It would not be wrong to say that the condition of tannery workers is no better than that of manual scavengers. With a majority of workers being women, the situation is even more distressing," the SC said.
It is also abundantly clear that the discharges were neither authorized nor in compliance with the standards set by the Pollution Control Boards. Though the reports indicate the establishment of CETPs and IETPs, the industries have still not achieved ZLD, till date, the apex court further added.
Vellore District Environment Monitoring Committee said that the tannery industry is not the sole polluter affecting the river. Other pollutants, such as untreated sewage and solid wastes generated in the towns are also being dumped into the river. Despite the responsibility of the municipalities to treat sewage, no effective steps have been taken and untreated sewage continues to be released directly into the river.
The SC directed the Tamil Nadu government to pay the compensation amount to all the affected families / individuals, if not already paid, in terms of the awards dated 07.03.2001 and 24.08.2009 passed by the LoEA within six weeks. The State government is also directed to recover the compensation amount from the polluters, if not already recovered, by initiating proceedings under the Revenue Recovery Act or through any other means permissible by law.
The State government in consultation with the Central Government, shall within a period of four weeks, constitute a committee, under the chairmanship of a retired High Court Judge and members, comprising of the Secretaries of both the State and Central Departments, environmental experts, representatives from the affected communities, and any other person as it deems fit, for the purpose of conducting an audit to identify, maintain and create a clean and healthy environment in Vellore District.
Since pollution is a continuing wrong until the condition is reversed, the polluters shall be liable to compensate the victims and liable for the damage and the Committee constituted as per direction (iii) LoEA (present) is directed to periodically assess and pass appropriate orders till then, the court said. the State shall implement the suggestions of the committee to formulate and implement a comprehensive rejuvenation plan for the Palar River, which includes removing pollutants, desilting, and ensuring adequate water flow and direct the concerned authorities and bodies to accomplish the same within a time frame.
The State shall ensure quarterly inspections of tanning industries in the district to assess compliance with environmental regulations and publish a report in its website disclosing all the material particulars. The inspection team shall verify whether the industries are established within permissible distances from prohibited zones, the status of ZLD compliance by the industries, and other relevant aspects. In addition the state shall facilitate a conduct of environment audit of each river in the State, ascertain the pollution, degradation, change in storage capacity, depletion of groundwater level and publish the results in the website, newspapers, media, and other public platforms.