CPCB tells NCR authorities to shut industries without pollution control orders
The Central Pollution Control Board has instructed state boards to issue show-cause notices to units failing to order air pollution control devices.
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has instructed pollution control authorities in the Delhi-NCR region to close industrial units that have not ordered the installation or upgrading of air pollution control devices (APCDs), according to The Hindu.
In an October 30 letter, the CPCB asked the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) and the State Pollution Control Boards of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan to issue immediate show-cause notices to non-compliant units.
These units fall under the revised emission norms set by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM). If they do not provide evidence of equipment orders within five days, they must face closure orders until they show a credible installation timeline.
The CAQM prescribed a particulate matter emission limit of 50 mg/Nm³ for 17 categories of highly polluting industries, including food-processing, textile, and metal industries. This revised standard became applicable on October 1.
The direction follows reports that several units have not ordered new APCDs, failed to retrofit equipment, or have not obtained adequacy assessment reports or exemption certificates.
Previous reports indicated that only about 200 of 2,321 identified industrial units had complied with installation or retrofitting requirements by July 31.