Municipal Corporation (MC) Commissioner Aaditya Dachalwal on Friday warned owners of dyeing units to take strict action in case they fail to stop dumping industrial waste into the sewer lines of the civic body, as per the instructions issued by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB). ). Dachalwal said the civic body would cut off the sewer connections of the strays in case they fail to mend their ways. As per PPCB guidelines, no waste from the dyeing industry, whether treated or not, should be discharged into the drains.

Dachalwal chaired a meeting of 33 dyeing unit owners in Industrial Zone A and other areas of the city at MC Zone D office. Concerns of the dyeing industry were discussed and solutions were proposed by those responsible. Chief engineer Ravinder Garg and other officials were also present in the meeting.

Officials said that as per the directions of the Supreme Court and the TNG, the industrial dyeing units must make arrangements to treat the effluent/waste on their own. Owners of the dyeing industry have been asked to adopt zero liquid discharge (ZLD) technology or set up a common effluent treatment plant (CETP) to treat waste from their dyeing units.

The MC commissioner said the National Green Tribunal (NGT) was regularly monitoring the situation and the government was also committed to reducing pollution at ‘Buddha Nullah’. The PPCB has issued instructions to take strict action against erring units in the dyeing industry.

Dachalwal further said that a final personal audience has been given to the industry and if they still fail to comply with the instructions, stern action will be taken against the defaulters. “No one can be allowed to pollute ‘Buddha Nullah’, which adds to the pollution of Sutlej river, which is a source of drinking water for many people in Punjab as well as Rajasthan.