Ensure immediate installation of tracking devices: NGT to watchdog on industrial units polluting Yamuna, Ganga

The bench was hearing a plea that alleged several Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs) units that generate more than 100 kg/day of Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) or discharge over 25 kilolitres of wastewater daily continue to operate without installing OCEMS despite clear directions from the CPCB. The plea cited CPCB data that flagged 704 defaulting GPIs in Uttar Pradesh, 812 in Haryana, 21 in Bihar, and 149 in Delhi.

The bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava (Chairperson) and Dr Afroz Ahmad (Expert Member) underlined that the CPCB and the respective State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) and Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) must take “prompt action to ensure that GPIs which are required to have OCEMS do not commit the default and install the same without any delay.”

The NGT also directed the CPCB Chairperson to consider the representation submitted by the applicant on March 8 this year and issue directions to the SPCBs and PCC of Delhi for strict compliance.

The Tribunal has asked the Member Secretaries of the SPCBs of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Bihar, along with the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), to submit compliance reports to the CPCB within two months from November 4.

The CPCB has been asked to take remedial and punitive action within one month and file a consolidated compliance report before the Tribunal within three months.

OCEMS are automated online devices that measure parameters such as pH, flow, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), and Total Suspended Solids (TSS), transmitting real-time data to pollution control authorities. The system helps regulators identify non-compliant industries and prevent untreated effluent from entering rivers.

In its order, the Tribunal underlined that CPCB must ensure not only the installation of OCEMS but also regular monitoring of data received from these systems to verify compliance. It stressed that failure to install or operate OCEMS would attract appropriate remedial and punitive measures under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and related provisions.