ELECTIONS '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ARCHIVES

Madras HC gives time till May 11 to 609 polluting units to clean up their effluents

The Madras high court has granted time till May 11 to 609 dyeing and bleaching units in Tirupur, Tamil Nadu, to complete the work on the construction of individual effluent treatment plants and common ETPs.

Disposing of a petition filed by P B Kuppusamy, president of the Karur Taluk Noyyal Canal Agriculturists Association, seeking a direction to take action against the units, which allegedly polluted the Noyyal river by discharging effluents, the HC passed the above order.

Refusing to give further extension of time to the units, the bench, comprising Chief Justice M S Liberhan and Justice E Padmanabhan, said in default, the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board, should take appropriate legal action against the units.

On the direction of the green bench, the board presented a status report, stating the number of units in which work on ETPs was in progress. After the report was filed the counsels for the petitioner, the units and the board and representatives of the units met on February 11 and prepared a joint memorandum based on which the bench passed the order.

In the memorandum, they said 288 units were connected with the CETPs, work on which was under progress and would be completed by May 11. The units would secure consent from the board. It was decided to extend the same benefits to 78 units, which had completed 100 per cent work on ETPs. As many as 243 units had completed 75 per cent of the works on ETPs. All other units will be closed.

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report