Maharashtra Pollution Control Board’s monitoring of industries constrained due to staff shortage, resulting in fewer inspections: CAG report

Mumbai: Flagging serious deficiencies in the functioning of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) stated that many industries were found to be operating without mandatory consents, thereby weakening compliance to environmental regulations, and the board's monitoring was severely constrained due to shortage of manpower, resulting in fewer inspections.The MPCB, which has powers to even order the closure of a plant for violation of rules, was found wanting in enforcement, said the CAG report, tabled before the Maharashtra legislative assembly.The ‘Subject Specific Compliance Audit' on the role of MPCB in the prevention of water pollution, covering the period 2017-18 to 2021-22, found that despite legal provisions, several industries were functioning without obtaining consent to establish and operate. "During joint physical verifications, several instances of non-compliance with prescribed consent conditions were noticed. These included the discharge of polluted effluents and untreated sewage into water bodies, non-functional effluent treatment plants, and failure to install online continuous emission monitoring systems. These lapses highlight weaknesses in enforcement and monitoring mechanisms," the report stated.The report stated: "The audit observed that there was a shortfall in the range of 53.5% to 68.35% in the number of visits actually carried out to the industries with respect to the scheduled visits during the period 2017-18 to 2022-23. Similarly, there was a substantial shortfall in visits to highly polluting industries such as sugar, paper, and pharmaceutical industries in the range of 58%-84%. Cases of non-compliance to consent conditions and non-observance of specific standards of parameters in respect of sugar/distillery, paper, and pharmaceutical industries were observed ... .Test results of 14 industries showed discharged effluent beyond prescribed standards of parameters in the range of five to 37 months. However, ROs did not initiate any action against these 14 defaulting industries."The CAG recommended that the MPCB should proactively coordinate with other government departments to ensure that all operational industries are brought under the consent regime. The government must review the existing manpower structure and take timely action to fill up all sanctioned posts at various levels to strengthen MPCB's field presence. The MPCB must ensure strict enforcement of consent conditions through regular and effective monitoring, particularly focusing on industries identified as high polluters.