Witnessing the failure of the Central and State Pollution Control Boards to take action against industries polluting Ganga River, the Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday entrusted the National Green Tribunal (NGT) with the responsibility of doing the job.
Giving the tribunal a free hand to crack the whip against 17 categories of grossly and highly polluting industries lined along the Ganges in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, the Bench headed by Justice TS Thakur said that for 30 years, its crusade to clean the holy river had failed due to the failure of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and State pollution boards to implement its orders. With industrial waste seen as the biggest threat to the health of the river and its flora and fauna, a PIl by social activist MC Mehta in 1985 had served a platform for the court to explore ways and means to save the river which served as the lifeline to millions of Indians.
“We regret to say that the intention of this court notwithstanding, sustained efforts by us over the past 30 years have led to no fruitful results except shutting down of some industrial units,” said the Bench, also comprising Justices Adarsh Goel and R Banumathi.
“This is largely because implementation lies with CPCB and SPCBs who have done practically nothing to implement our orders,” it added. In the absence of any adequate mechanism to monitor their functioning, the Bench hoped that the job could be better done by NGT, vested with wide powers under the Environment Protection Act, Water Act and Air Act. These Acts allow the Tribunal to close down the polluting industries and even snap water and electricity supply to the erring units for non-compliance of its orders.
The Bench sought half-yearly reports from NGT on the action taken on this front even as it kept to itself other issues of pollution faced by Ganga, particularly from domestic waste and untreated sewage.
Expressing deep concern over the present pollution level of the river, which it described as the “lifeline” of the country, the Bench said: “This is an institutional failure and their (CPCB and SPCBs) story is a story of complete failure, frustration and disaster.”
Ironically, the 17 categories of grossly polluting industries were drawn up by CPCB on February 5, 2014 but action was lacking on its part to ensure no industrial waste was allowed to be drained into the river. “When it involves a river which is held in such high esteem by millions of people in the country one can hardly neglect our duty towards its purification…this river not only has significance in spiritual and mythological psyche of countrymen but has sustained as a lifeline of millions of people,” the order said.
What was required of the CPCB and SPCBs was to stand up against the polluting units. But seeing this not happening even in the next 50 years, the bench felt that the NGT having expert members on its panel could accomplish this task. It was free to take assistance from outside agencies, the Bench said, while posting the matter for December 10 to monitor other causes of pollution in Ganga.