Kerala State Pollution Control Board has assessed a total environment compensation of 1.59 crore on the Ernakulam Junction railway station for illegal discharge of untreated wastewater and oil containing waste from its loco shed into the canals leading to the Vembanad Lake.
The penalty has been assessed as part of the directives issued by the National Green Tribunal to initiate action against the pollution of Edappally and Perandoor canals. The Southern Bench of the tribunal had taken suo motu notice of The Hindu report titled “Faecal contamination high in Perandoor, Edappally Canals” published on January 28, 2021.
In two separate notices issued by the chairman of the board to the Station Manager and the Divisional Mechanical Engineer of the Diesel Loco Shed on June 27, the board mentioned that the environment compensation assessed for not setting up a sewage treatment plant resulting in the discharge of untreated sewage was 1.06 crore. The penalty fixed for contamination of the Mullassery canal, which joins with the Perandoor canal before reaching the Vembanad Lake owing to the illegal discharge of contaminated oil from the loco shed was 53 lakh.
The board stated that the station authorities had not yet constructed the sewage treatment plant despite receiving several directions. The disposal of untreated sewage is in violation of Section 24 of the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act 1974. The environment compensation was assessed for a period of 855 days from January 4, 2021 to May 9, 2023.
On the lapses in the proper remediation of waste oil from the diesel loco shed, the notice said that the authorities were instructed earlier that the contamination can be controlled only if the entire oil contaminated sludge is removed from the site. The land adjacent to the loco shed (water logged area) is contaminated with oil spilled from the operation of the facility. It was also reported that oil sludge has been accumulated in the area due to the continuous discharge of oil.
