Firms ignore warnings

Hyderabad: Despite notices and warnings from the AP Pollution Control Board and regular monitoring by the police, small-scale factories in and around Jeedimetla are still letting out hazardous waste into the Kukatpally nala, which ultimately finds its way to Hussainsagar.

About 350 million litre of sewage, including the polluting effluents, flows from the nala under Bridge No. 4 at Necklace Road and mixes with the treated water of Hussainsagar. It results in the water changing colour, and algae is formed especially near the bund.

About 50 million litre of treated water is let into the Hussainsagar every day from the sewage treatment plant, but this water gets polluted again, say officials.

Electroplating units top the list of polluters. According to the PCB, there are close to 130 electroplating units in Jeedimetla; many of them have been dumping harmful waste for seven years now. 

The units dump the chemical waste at connecting points of the Kukatapally drain during late hours. A sampling of the waste by the PCB showed the presence of heavy metals like cadmium and arsenic.  Water quality sampling done showed up difference in parameters like biological oxygen percentage, pH value and presence of chemicals.

In December last year, the APPCB had approached the chief secretary with a list of top pollutants and proposed an action plan to shift the units to a site 40 km away. PCB director Sanjay Kumar said the Board would pay 50 per cent of the shifting cost.

So far, a closure notice has been issued to five units. The shifting of the units is proposed to be done in three months.

GPS to track trucks carrying effluents

Hyderabad: Tons of untreated effluents from various industries located both inside and outside the Jeedimetla industrial estate are being illegally discharged into lakes, drains and open spaces daily, instead of being channeled to the effluent treatment plant.

The industries hire private tankers to dump the effluents elsewhere to avoid the pre-treatment procedure for the effluents. The PCB so far has been unable to track or monitor these tankers as the entry database is manually updated.

The PCB, therefore, is set to introduce a GPS system in which entry details will be done online and the vehicle will be tracked by the PCB and the JETL.

The city has treatment plants at Jeedimetla, Manna Effluents Treatment Plant, IDPL and at Mallapur. Every water polluting industry is required to discharge effluents at these plants for treatment.

Standard parameters stipulate mandatory pre-treatment of effluents by the industry before sending them to a plant. However, most of them flout the rule and directly send the waste to the plant, which are then sent back by the treatment centre. The waste is illegally dumped into lakes, drains and open spaces.

PCB director Sanjay Kumar  said, “The GPS will be installed in all the  registered vehicles of the factories. When a tanker carrying the waste leaves the factory for JETL, the number of the vehicle, quantity of effluents, time and the duration in which the tanker will reach JETL will be filed online. Even if a tanker takes a wrong route, the GPS will alert the officials  who can track it and prevent illegal discharge.”