In the backdrop of increasing complaints of air and water pollution due to industrial effluents, Municipal Administration Minister K.T. Rama Rao has sought a report on industries located around the city.
The Minister held a review meeting with the officials of Telangana State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB) on Saturday and asked them to compile data on the number of industries along with the quantity of chemical effluents being discharged from them. Mr. Rao also wanted to know the number of trucks transporting the waste and how much of it was being treated at the effluent plants. This way one could keep track of the illegal disposal of waste, the Minister said.
The Minister instructed the officials to take stringent action against the industries that were disposing waste in an illegal manner, thus causing pollution. The board officials were told to ensure that effluents were not dumped in water and responding to that, the high officials informed that a total of 120 CCTV cameras had been installed at locations where the activity frequently takes place. The access to the feed of the CCTV cameras is with the board officials as wellas the police, they added.
The Minister asked the officials to book criminal cases against the managements of industries which were dumping waste in borewells in the peripheral areas like Patancheru, Choutuppal, Sangareddy. The officials were asked to ensure clean drinking water to the villages whose ground water has been contaminated.
In the review meeting, the beautification measures of Hussainsagar were also discussed. Mr. Rao said that 90% of the sewage that was flowing in to the lake has been stopped and the pollution has come down. He informed that constructing mini-ponds for Ganesh immersion has also helped the rejuvenation of Hussainsagar. He told the officials that if the flow of industrial effluents in the lake is not prevented then it will once again become toxic.
