The Gujarat High Court pointed out the need for the urgency of stopping dumping treated industrial effluents into Sabarmati river to the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) and Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Vaibhavi Nanavati highlighted that the treated industrial effluents must be redirected for industrial reuse. The High Court drew attention toward water pollution and soil contamination that affect crops downstream. The High Court was hearing of a suo motu PIL on the issue of river pollution.
While bringing the attention of the GPCB and AMC, once again, to their earlier observation about the industrial wastewater to be treated in the common effluent treatment plants (CETPs) and diverted to the industries for reuse, the High Court wanted to know the answer to a serious question “Why should industries be allowed to use groundwater?” The Gujarat High Court bench suggested framing of norms and policies for industries to prevent them from releasing effluents into the river.
The court also rejected the idea of deep sea discharge mooted by the industry saying “Since the sea is huge, you can do anything?
Taking a stern stand against the water pollution by the industries, the Chief Justice wanted to know if there was any study on the extent of damage caused to the river due to effluent dumping. She pointed out that dumping treated water in the river will never solve the problem. She expected the CETPs to treat effluents to a commercially viable level for industrial reuse. The previous orders of the Chief Justice mentioned high metal content in the soil downstream due to dumping treated effluents.
The Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal said while we are in the stage of water scarcity, pure water is being used by the industry and then released in the river as contaminated. She said that the river water is used for irrigation leading to serious diseases like cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. ” I am very serious about it.” the Chief Justice said, reiterating the need for zero discharge from industries.
