Latest news with #HaryanaStatePollutionControlBoard
Time of India
5 days ago
- General
- Time of India
No STPs, waste flows through Badshapur drain into Yamuna
Gurgaon: Toxic waste continues to flow unchecked into the city's Badshapur drain, polluting the Yamuna — amid an absence of any treatment mechanism. The Badshapur drain spans 29km and is technically a rainwater channel. But over the years, it has become a dumping line for industrial and domestic waste. Industrial units in the city are continuing to discharge untreated wastewater into the Badshapur stormwater drain, despite repeated complaints, official surveys and govt action plans identifying the channel as a key source of pollution in Yamuna. What flows through it eventually empties into the Najafgarh drain and finally, the Yamuna — carrying a toxic cocktail that includes chemicals, sewage and heavy metals. You Can Also Check: Gurgaon AQI | Weather in Gurgaon | Bank Holidays in Gurgaon | Public Holidays in Gurgaon Locals say no inspection teams have visited the area in months. Residents said these units often discharge chemical-laced water into the same channel at night or early morning. "We have seen at least 15 tankers dumping waste into the drain at the same spot. This is routine," said Manoj Yadav, a resident of Sector 34. "Sometimes they wait until it's dark, assuming nobody's watching." In 2019, the Haryana State Pollution Control Board identified 26 illegal discharge points into the Badshapur channel. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is this legal? Access all TV channels without a subscription! Techno Mag Learn More Undo A year before that, the state's own Yamuna Action Plan flagged this very drain as a major source of pollution entering the river system. An HSPCB official on Friday acknowledged that untreated effluents being released into the stormwater channel was a problem but added that the agency has resource constraints. "We are aware of the violations and have issued notices to several industrial units in the area. We have shut down several polluting units in the past," the official said. Guddu Kumar, another local, said the stench is unbearable. "It's hard to breathe. Our kids keep falling sick. We have filed complaints with the pollution board, but nothing changes." Environmentalist Varun Gulati said, "This isn't new. For years, we have submitted photos, videos and written complaints. These units dump waste somewhere after getting notice or sometimes shift to some other place." Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Friendship Day wishes , messages and quotes !
Time of India
29-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
No air pollution in Gurgaon? All Haryana AQI monitoring stations have been defunct since April
In a shocking revelation, all 29 air quality monitoring stations run by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) have remained offline since April 2, leaving the state without reliable pollution data. With the peak pollution months of October and November approaching, officials warn that the absence of real-time air quality information may undermine enforcement of mitigation strategies across India's most polluted region, a TOI report stated. No state-wide air quality data since April The HSPCB's entire monitoring network started going offline after October 31 last year. By December-end, nearly half of the stations had stopped recording data. The remaining stations gradually went offline until the entire network stopped functioning in April 2025. The only available air quality data now comes from two India Meteorological Department (IMD) stations, one in Gurgaon and the other in Panchkula. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Public Policy Leadership Operations Management CXO Data Science Healthcare PGDM healthcare Data Analytics Degree Others Artificial Intelligence MCA Finance Cybersecurity MBA Data Science Project Management Product Management Management Digital Marketing others Technology Design Thinking Skills you'll gain: Economics for Public Policy Making Quantitative Techniques Public & Project Finance Law, Health & Urban Development Policy Duration: 12 Months IIM Kozhikode Professional Certificate Programme in Public Policy Management Starts on Mar 3, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Duration: 12 Months IIM Calcutta Executive Programme in Public Policy and Management Starts on undefined Get Details On days when these two stations experience technical glitches, as recently seen in Gurgaon, Haryana is left with no pollution data at all. Maintenance contract expired, no backup in place The disruption began when the pollution control board allowed its maintenance contract with the previous operator to lapse after five years. No interim arrangement was made to keep the system running. 'There should have been a contingency plan. Even if you want to bring in a new vendor, you don't shut off surveillance entirely. That's like switching off CCTV in a high-crime zone because you are changing the camera vendor,' a senior HSPCB official admitted. Live Events Tender process delayed, could miss October deadline A fresh tender floated in May attracted only one bidder, which was automatically disqualified under procurement rules requiring at least two participants. A revised tender is expected to be issued this week, with a deadline for submissions by late August. Officials estimate that the full selection process—including technical and financial evaluation, review by a high-powered committee, and final approval from the chief minister's office—could take 60 to 90 days. This means that the network might not be restored before the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) comes into effect on October 15. Experts flag serious risks during peak smog season Experts warn that the monitoring blackout could have serious implications. Shubhansh Tiwari, research associate at Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), said, 'This blackout is likely to have serious consequences. Winter is the most polluted time of year in Haryana, with air quality often slipping into 'very poor' or 'severe' category due to stagnant weather, crop residue burning and fossil fuel emissions. Without functioning monitors, district authorities can't track local AQI levels, identify pollution spikes, decide when to implement pollution curbs.' Sunil Dahiya, founder and lead analyst at Envirocatalysts, said, 'Decisions on opening bids for new contracts for govt services are usually planned well before the existing one ends, especially for maintaining such critical infrastructure as air quality monitoring in a state like Haryana, which lies in one of the most polluted areas. It's unfortunate that this happened, but it should serve as a reminder to plan better for the future and for other states.' Broader impact on pollution control programmes Without continuous monitoring, officials say that key frameworks like GRAP, the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), and Haryana's state-specific action plans will be affected. These programmes require consistent data to evaluate performance and implement pollution-control measures. Manoj Kumar, an analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), said, 'In the absence of real-time data, it is tough to assess if efforts are underway to restore the monitoring system ahead of the upcoming peak pollution season. This gap in information affects both public awareness and the ability to evaluate policy response.' Limited coverage from IMD stations The two IMD-operated monitors in Gurgaon and Panchkula are inadequate to reflect air quality across Haryana's diverse regions. 'You can't extrapolate Delhi's air to Karnal or Hisar,' said a senior officer working on the clean air programme. 'The pollution sources, local weather patterns, and emissions vary. A single reading from Gurgaon tells you nothing about what's happening in Yamunanagar or Panipat.' The officer added that even a city-wide average may not reflect conditions in all its neighbourhoods. Gurgaon's alarming air quality in early 2025 An analysis by CREA found that January 19, 2025, was Gurgaon's 'overshoot day'—the date by which PM2.5 levels had already crossed the annual limit set by the World Health Organisation. Even if the city had registered zero pollution for the rest of the year, it still would not meet the WHO standard. The study ranked Gurgaon as the fifth most polluted Indian city in the first half of 2025. Officials confirm fresh tender to be floated When contacted, HSPCB chairman Vineet Garg confirmed that the board is in the process of changing certain conditions in the tender and will float the new bid by the end of July. Until then, however, there will be no operational monitoring stations across the state. (Inputs from TOI)
Time of India
20-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
100% shocker: Swachh marks for water bodies cleanliness in Panchkula do not match actual conditions
Panchkula: Full 100 per cent marks in the 'cleanliness of water bodies' category came as a big surprise in the recent Swachh Survekshan, as none of the parameters match the scoring, raising questions on the marking process of the nationwide survey conducted here. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now According to the Swachh Survekshan Toolkit, the objective of the indicator is to ensure that the "water bodies are clean, pollutant-free, well-maintained, equipped with litter bins and anti-littering measures, with at least one water body aesthetically enhanced for public use within its jurisdiction." However, not a single one of these criteria is met in the water bodies, which are highly polluted, have garbage dumps, no bins, and are not used for public purposes either. The second main part of the category was the validation methodology: "The validation for this indicator will be carried out by visiting the water bodies within the ULB's jurisdiction." But, eyebrows are being raised over these visits, which also had to capture photographs and videos at the sampled locations, as the dirty condition of these water bodies is quite visible. It's not just residents' concern; there are govt reports too highlighting how polluted rivers and drains are in the city. "Not even one out of the eleven parameters for judging water body cleanliness is being fulfilled at Panchkula. Yet, we are scoring 100 per cent marks. This can't even be a joke being played on the residents of Panchkula. So much for the authenticity and integrity of the Swachh Survekshan 2024-2025," commented Mohit Gupta, co-founder of the Save Ghaggar Campaign and founder of Solution Box. According to the Haryana State Pollution Control Board, Panchkula, in February this year, it found that the Ghaggar River, before meeting Sukhna Choe in Panchkula, had a Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) level of 9.8 mg/L and a Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) level of 56 mg/L. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now As per norms, for rivers, the ideal BOD level for healthy water bodies should be 3 mg/L or less, while COD levels should ideally be below 10 mg/L. However, the levels are exceeded by high margins in the district, raising health and environmental concerns. Similar is the plight of drains here, but it seemed to have been ignored by the Swachh inspection team. The sorry state of affairs in terms of cleanliness is no secret in Ghaggar, where all sorts of garbage and other religious and non-religious items are thrown and dumped by people from different parts of Panchkula and adjoining areas. The situation is so bad that, after losing hope in the district authorities about cleanliness, some residents are themselves carrying out cleanliness drives here under the Save Ghaggar Campaign. Even garbage can be seen flowing in drains and other rivers with dirty water. "It raises questions on the marking process for this category. Last year also they gave the same 100 per cent marks for the cleanliness of water bodies. Does the team not do ground inspection? Or do they not follow govt department reports? The water bodies have alarming BOD and COD levels and have huge waste dumps inside and at their banks. I will take up the issue with the authorities carrying out the survey, which is totally bereft of ground reality," said Tapasaya Sharma, co-founder of the Save Ghaggar Campaign. "Even the flow of natural nallahs is in complete disarray. Whether the nallahs flowing from Sector 2 or Sector 17/7, they are very dirty. Water bodies here have a permanent brown colour. Whether it is Nada or Nandana Choe, they have leachate. Sewerage is released in the nallahs near Mata Mansa Devi temple. There are even NGT reports about industrial waste being released in Ghaggar. I fail to understand how all this can be overlooked in the survey," added Mohit Gupta. However, President of the Federation of Residents Association (FORA), RP Malhotra, felt putting up of nets on old Ghaggar river bridge has helped stopping throwing of waste from the road. It may be mentioned here the city overall performed its worst ever securing 219th rank nationally and 22nd rank in state. Cleanliness of water bodies category: Scheme of marking: - Are the water bodies free from solid waste, water weeds, or any other pollutants (40/40 marks) - Is the area around all water bodies clean, well-maintained, and free from any open garbage sites or dumps within a 500-metre radius (40/40 marks) - Do the water bodies have twin bins in place to eliminate the accumulation of garbage/waste in and around them, along with anti-littering messages/signage (40/40 marks) - Is at least one body aesthetically pleasing, with the surrounding area beautified to include pavements for public use, trees, and branches (30/30 marks) MSID:: 122781697 413 | Panchkula: Full 100 per cent marks in the 'cleanliness of water bodies' category came as a big surprise in the recent Swachh Survekshan, as none of the parameters match the scoring, raising questions on the marking process of the nationwide survey conducted here. According to the Swachh Survekshan Toolkit, the objective of the indicator is to ensure that the "water bodies are clean, pollutant-free, well-maintained, equipped with litter bins and anti-littering measures, with at least one water body aesthetically enhanced for public use within its jurisdiction." However, not a single one of these criteria is met in the water bodies, which are highly polluted, have garbage dumps, no bins, and are not used for public purposes either. The second main part of the category was the validation methodology: "The validation for this indicator will be carried out by visiting the water bodies within the ULB's jurisdiction." But, eyebrows are being raised over these visits, which also had to capture photographs and videos at the sampled locations, as the dirty condition of these water bodies is quite visible. It's not just residents' concern; there are govt reports too highlighting how polluted rivers and drains are in the city. "Not even one out of the eleven parameters for judging water body cleanliness is being fulfilled at Panchkula. Yet, we are scoring 100 per cent marks. This can't even be a joke being played on the residents of Panchkula. So much for the authenticity and integrity of the Swachh Survekshan 2024-2025," commented Mohit Gupta, co-founder of the Save Ghaggar Campaign and founder of Solution Box. According to the Haryana State Pollution Control Board, Panchkula, in February this year, it found that the Ghaggar River, before meeting Sukhna Choe in Panchkula, had a Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) level of 9.8 mg/L and a Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) level of 56 mg/L. As per norms, for rivers, the ideal BOD level for healthy water bodies should be 3 mg/L or less, while COD levels should ideally be below 10 mg/L. However, the levels are exceeded by high margins in the district, raising health and environmental concerns. Similar is the plight of drains here, but it seemed to have been ignored by the Swachh inspection team. The sorry state of affairs in terms of cleanliness is no secret in Ghaggar, where all sorts of garbage and other religious and non-religious items are thrown and dumped by people from different parts of Panchkula and adjoining areas. The situation is so bad that, after losing hope in the district authorities about cleanliness, some residents are themselves carrying out cleanliness drives here under the Save Ghaggar Campaign. Even garbage can be seen flowing in drains and other rivers with dirty water. "It raises questions on the marking process for this category. Last year also they gave the same 100 per cent marks for the cleanliness of water bodies. Does the team not do ground inspection? Or do they not follow govt department reports? The water bodies have alarming BOD and COD levels and have huge waste dumps inside and at their banks. I will take up the issue with the authorities carrying out the survey, which is totally bereft of ground reality," said Tapasaya Sharma, co-founder of the Save Ghaggar Campaign. "Even the flow of natural nallahs is in complete disarray. Whether the nallahs flowing from Sector 2 or Sector 17/7, they are very dirty. Water bodies here have a permanent brown colour. Whether it is Nada or Nandana Choe, they have leachate. Sewerage is released in the nallahs near Mata Mansa Devi temple. There are even NGT reports about industrial waste being released in Ghaggar. I fail to understand how all this can be overlooked in the survey," added Mohit Gupta. However, President of the Federation of Residents Association (FORA), RP Malhotra, felt putting up of nets on old Ghaggar river bridge has helped stopping throwing of waste from the road. It may be mentioned here the city overall performed its worst ever securing 219th rank nationally and 22nd rank in state. Cleanliness of water bodies category: Scheme of marking: - Are the water bodies free from solid waste, water weeds, or any other pollutants (40/40 marks) - Is the area around all water bodies clean, well-maintained, and free from any open garbage sites or dumps within a 500-metre radius (40/40 marks) - Do the water bodies have twin bins in place to eliminate the accumulation of garbage/waste in and around them, along with anti-littering messages/signage (40/40 marks) - Is at least one body aesthetically pleasing, with the surrounding area beautified to include pavements for public use, trees, and branches (30/30 marks) MSID:: 122781697 413 |
Time of India
20-07-2025
- Time of India
Trees axed without approval? NGT serves notice to agencies in Haryana
Gurgaon: Months after the sarpanch of Arua in Faridabad's Ballabhgarh tehsil allegedly cut down 150-200 trees "without obtaining requisite permissions" from the competent authorities or approval from the forest department, multiple notices were issued by National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now While the tribunal has listed the matter for further consideration on Oct 16, the replies have been sought from the authorities as well as the sarpanch, Mukesh, a week before that. The petitioner — local resident Arun Kumar — had said that despite complaints filed with both the forest department and the Chhainsa police station on March 27, and an ensuing inspection by forest officials, "no action was reportedly taken to address the illegal activity". Petitioner Arun Kumar, appearing in person via videoconference, submitted the forest department's inspection report, which confirmed illegal tree felling in the area. Photographs substantiating the claims were also placed on record. In the backdrop of this, the principal bench of NGT, led by chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava and expert member Dr A Senthil Vel, directed that notices be issued to the member secretary of Haryana State Pollution Control Board, Faridabad district Magistrate, divisional forest officer of Faridabad and the sarpanch, asking them to file their replies by way of affidavit at least a week before the next hearing. Taking a serious view of the matter, the tribunal noted the application raises substantial questions regarding compliance with environmental norms. "Applicant appearing virtually submits that in the report of the forest department it has come to light illegal felling of trees took place but in spite of that no action has been taken by the authorities. In support of the plea, the applicant has placed on record certain photographs along with the letter petition. OA raises substantial questions relating to compliance with environmental norms," the order said. The applicant has been instructed to serve the notices to the respondents and submit proof of service prior to the upcoming hearing.
Time of India
12-07-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Yamunanagar faces pollution crisis: 8 formaldehyde plants under scrutiny of pollution board
Yamunanagar: As the 15-day deadline given to eight formaldehyde manufacturing units in Yamunanagar by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB), it raises serious questions about the next course of action by the district administration. These units were and are still operating without mandatory environmental clearances and in violation of the Water Act and Air Act and the order of the Supreme Court. As per Sudhir Mohan, Executive Regional Officer (ERO) of the Yamunanagar of HSPCB, plant owners were issued notices on June 21 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. They were asked to show cause why prosecution, closure orders, and environmental compensation should not be initiated against them. These eight units are established in different parts of Yamunanagar district including Yamunanagar, Jathlana, Jagadhri, Chhachhrauli, Radaur and others. ERO Sudhir said these units have submitted their replies after the notices, which are currently under scrutiny. He said after the scrutiny the report will be sent to the HSPCB headquarters for further action. The HSPCB in its notices warned that if they fail to meet the required environmental standards and secure Environmental Clearance (EC), closure notices will be issued. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Don't Pay Full Price for 2025's Top Games! Shop Now Undo The fate of these formaldehyde units could have a ripple effect on the local plywood industry. Formaldehyde is an essential chemical used in the production of resin, which binds plywood layers together. Without it, the industry cannot function. This chemical's pollution has cancer causing substances, said Yamunanagar deputy civil surgeon. According to JK Bihani, District President of the Plywood Factory Association, 'Formaldehyde is the backbone of the plywood industry. If these plants shut down, over 160 active plywood units could follow, especially when 190 have already closed due to recession.' Formaldehyde is classified as a hazardous chemical known to cause health issues like cancer, respiratory irritation, allergies, and skin problems. Its industrial use, especially in adhesive resins, requires strict regulation and environmental approval, which many of the plants had reportedly bypassed for years. Officials say a final decision on enforcement actions, including possible shutdowns, will be made after examining the responses submitted by the plant operators. As scrutiny continues, the region's critical plywood manufacturing economy hangs in the balance. Yamunanagar deputy civil surgeon Dr Divya Mangla said, 'When formaldehyde is dissolved in water, it is very hazardous for the human body. It can lead to irritation, respiratory problems and even can lead to cancer. It is very important to stop pollution from this chemical and protect air, water and the environment for better human health.' With the deadline now passed and the stakes high, the coming days will be crucial for Yamunanagar's environment and economy alike.
