Vadodara Industrial Cluster which has about 300 industries is allegedly dumping effluents into Gujarat’s pristine rivers. Activists have shared evidence of such pollution for decades, but industries still have the gall to allegedly ask pollution control boards to go soft on them as they’re struggling during the lockdown!

Independent People’s Tribunal’s findings in 1999

In February 1999, The Indian People’s Tribunal on Environment and Human Rights headed by Late Justice Hosbet Suresh was launched to understand the spread and ramifications of industrialization and pollution in the ‘Golden Corridor’ of Gujarat. The inquiry was held in response to the requests from Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti, Vadodara Kamdar Union, Vyavasahik Swastha Swaksha Mandal and other concerned individuals and organisations active in the area. The panel of experts included environmental lawyers, health specialists and occupational health specialists and scientists.

The tribunal had studied the Effluent Channel Project (ECP) which commenced in 1983. The 55.6 kms long closed masonry conduit passes through agricultural lands in 24 villages in Vadodara and Bharuch districts. We were informed that initially only 13 industries discharged their effluents through the Channel, but now at least 150 industries are members of the ECP. The ECP meets Gulf of Cambay at Sarod village in Bharuch District, at J Point where the effluent is discharged into the estuary.

While in 1999 the number of industries was found to be 150, environmentalists say that now there are at least 300 industries dumping waste water into the ECP. A thesis conducted by Mr. Avnesh Sharma titled “Environment Impact Assessment Along the Effluent Channel from Baroda to Jambusar and At its Confluence with Mahi Estuary at the Gulf of Cambay with Special Reference to Heavy Metals” had pointed out increasing heavy metal contamination –

 “The total solids was quite high with the value of nearly 2000 mg. per liter at J Point and it was hardly 200 gms per liter upstream of J Point. There was an overall increase of 34 % between 1991 and 1993. Correspondingly, both dissolved solids and suspended solids have also registered an increase.  This is reflected in the increasing concentration of these parameters upstream. A matter of concern is the dissolved oxygen content at the J Point which in the span of 3 year study period has shown a decrease from a maximum of 7 mg per liter to 6.1 mg per liter in 1993. Correspondingly the COD value has increased by 12%. Disconcertingly, the COD and BOD values in the upstream area in turn have increased 100 and 332% respectively.”

The thesis also pointed out at an increase in the concentration of chlorides, sulfates and nitrates apart from a disturbing trend in the increasing concentrations of cyanide, oil grease and phenols at the three points of the study from 1991 to 1993. The study also found metal contamination of the soil from an area irrigated by the ECP effluent water and possible seepage of water and contaminants into the underground aquifers over the years.

Not only this, the tribunal had also found that the people along the ‘Golden Corridor’ complained of asthma, cancer, infertility and related problems, corrosion of fingers, toes and perforation of the nasal septum (wall separating the nostrils), skin irritation and other health problems.

Soon after the news of the tribunal’s examination to be held at the site, the Chief Executive of the ECP had replied that values of the metal were “well below the standards”, denied that there was seepage of the ECP effluent into tube wells and that the effluent was safe enough to be mixed with the sea and didn’t harm aquatic life. What was more appalling was that he said that there were “elaborate arrangements” for proper dispersion of the out fall of the ECP and elaborate arrangements “gun men, guards, notices and hoarding not to use the ECP effluent for agriculture”. He had also stated that “some farmers may be using channel effluent not only because they may not have a source of fresh water supply but because of the temptation to use the channel water which is free of cost and is not found to damage the crops.

The findings of the tribunal on the ECP case were that the ECP project was found to be ill-conceived. The tribunal pointed out that if the idea of the ECP was to transport highly polluted effluent into the sea to save the villages from its deleterious effect, even that purpose wasn’t fully served as there was heavy metal contamination found in the soil and vegetation around the channel. The tribunal had recommended that the ECP construct an underground closed pipeline to carry the effluents so as to minimize the risk of farmers using the effluent for irrigation of unauthorized entities dumping into the channel.

From 1999 – 2020

From 1999 until now, environmentalists have been communicating the issues of non-compliance of the ECP by Vadodara Enviro Channel Limited, but even then there has been no definitive action taken against them.

In latest reports, the members of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti (PSS) in 2018, along with the Gujarat Pollution Control Board and Farmers Action Group had undertaken a joint investigation into the status of groundwater in Vadodara’s Padra Taluka and found that the Chemical Oxygen Demand at the Huntsman International India (P) Ltd found that the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) levels were 2225 in Abstraction Well 1 and 2959 in Well 2 inside the factory premises.

In a sample collected on October 12, 2019 Prajapati had told The Times of India that the Chemical Oxygen Demand was 1214 mg/l instead of the permissible 250 mg/l. In a sample taken on September 6, 2019, the COD at J Point was 1976 mg/l. On August 13, 2019, the COD was 1078 mg/l.

On June 1, 2020, the PSS had again written to top officials regarding the shocking violations at the J point. A consistent study of the wastewater discharged shows that prescribed norms have continuously been violated. According to the latest samples taken in May 2020, the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) at ‘J Point’ is 1065 mg/l (Norm: 250 mg/l), Chloride 7497 mg/l (Norms 600 mg/l), Sulfate 1473 mg/l (Norms 100 mg/l), and Ammoniacal Nitrogen (NH3-N) 232.96 mg/l (Norms 50 mg/l).

Recent videos of the river being polluted may be viewed below.

PLEASE EMBED VIDEO HERE

(Video Courtesy – Rohit Prajapati)

The environmentalists had said given the contamination of the ground water, it could be said that the officials of the government officials had failed in their duties and responsibilities to act against the polluting industries. The environmentalists had called for a criminal case against all the industries around ECP demanding exemplary action and a criminal case against the Chief Secretary, the Additional Chief Secretary of Forest and Environment Department of Gujarat State, the Chairman of GPCB, the Collector(s) of Vadodara District who are and were holding the post from 2000 – 2019, for their failing in their duty, in spite of repeated complaints, in preventing the contamination of groundwater at irreversible level.

After continued complaints by the PSS on December 13 2018, the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) had issued VECL a closure notice for not complying with water quality norms and stated that if corrective measures were not taken by VECL within 30 days, it would be forced to implement closure. VECL had then moved the Gujarat High court against this notice. However, even after all these efforts by PSS and the orders by the NGT and Supreme Court, VECL was given four extensions by the GPCB even though the CC&A license had expired. GPCB cited that the extensions were given on the basis of reports saying they were trying to address the issue, DNA had reported.

In 2018, the PSS had asked for ad-hoc Exemplary Monetary Compensation along with medical services to the farmers and villagers who have suffered from groundwater pollution. This should collectively be decided by CPCB, GPCB, affected farmers, and the representatives of the Voluntary Organisation working in this area on the basis of monthly instalments per contaminated well until decontamination of well is done by way of short-term and long-term remedial measures, including but not limited to technically and scientifically sound holistic nature restoration of polluted and damaged land and water areas based on the “Polluter Pays Principle”.

However, even after repeated attempts, there has been no response of concerned authorities with regards to the setting up of “common effluent treatment plants” and “sewage treatment plants” as directed by the Supreme Court (No. 375 of 2012) or to take up in-situ remediation of sewage as directed by the National Green Tribunal (No. 673 of 2018). Not only this, the PSS said that when it approached a city Corporation and a Municipality to work out the detailed plan for investigation, improvement of the existing STPs, discontinuation of the untreated Sewage into Rivers and water bodies, it didn’t receive an adequate or satisfactory response from these authorities.

Through the years, the PSS and other organizations have not only brought evidence to support their claims of river and ground water pollution, but have also handed on a platter, to authorities, remediation measures to control the repercussions. However, even then the authorities continue to turn a blind eye to such well thought-out and researched measures, thus allowing polluting industries to escape from the clutches of the law.

Now the new draft Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) 2020 proposed by the Union government is another step ensured at neglecting the much needed balance between development and environmental protection, by allowing post-facto clearance, expanding the list of projects exempted from public consultation, extending the validity period of clearance granted to mining projects and decreasing the monitoring requirement thus reducing accountability. The authorities have always turned a blind eye towards the indigenous people of the land who depend on nature for their lives and livelihood. As industrial disasters continue to spurt, the inaction of the government combined with the draft EIA 2020 is only going to further rob people of their lands and ruin the last of nature that we have left.

Related:

VECL consistently flouting environmental laws: Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti

Environmentalist decries continuous pollution of Daman Ganga river by Vapi industries

GPCB’s casual reply to action sought in view of dangerously very high COD level in groundwater

New sample suggests high pollution off Vadodara effluent channel, ‘requires’ action

The post Vadodara’s industries continue to pollute river and groundwater with impunity appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Chromite is extensively used in mineral industry, chemical industries, welding industries and refinery industries. Of the entire chromite production in the world, 94.5% is used in the mineral industry, 3.5% in refinery industry, and 2% in chemical industry. Iron, steel, cement, glass, ceramic industry, leather, paints, also make use of chromite. Of the entire chromites reserves in India, 98.6% is found in the Sukinda region of Odisha. It is true that Sukinda alone fulfils India’s entire domestic need of chromite. Not only that, Sukinda is one of the very few opencast chromite mines in the entire world. And today, the same Sukinda region that is the harbinger of prosperity is being ravaged by pollution.

Folk History of Sukinda
Folklore says that a young prince from Central India had once come to Puri along with his retinue of followers. As he was returning from his pilgrimage to Lord Jagannath, he had to pass through Sukinda along with its dense forests and mountain range. As night fell, he spent the night in Patana village with all his retinue. When the Prince woke up in the morning, his eyes fell on some bees hovering around some clothes drying in the open. The clothes belonged to the daughter of the sabara chieftain.

The prince felt that this girl is of the rarest quality – one in a million. He was keen to marry her. The sabara community chief agreed to give her hand in marriage to the Prince. The prince was overwhelmed by the abundance of natural scenic beauty of the forests and the mountain range. He made up his mind to settle there. He sent his retinue to his father’s kingdom and asked for more money and wealth. Gradually, the Sukinda kingdom was established.

Since the Prince was married to a girl of sabara community , till date the royal family of Sukinda is regarded as maternal cousins by the entire community. According to the accounts of the royal family, it is known that forty six generations have continued since the time Srikar Bhupati first settled here.

Over a period of time, the family left Patana village and went to Pataballi village near Tomka and Sukinda Garh.  It is thus ascertained that people have inhabited this region since time immemorial. And the inhabitants are largely sabara. In course of time, other adivasi communities as well as Kudumi community have settled in the valley. Now, in the seven gram panchayats of Sukinda, the majority communities are Munda and then Sabara. In addition, there are adivasi communities like santhals, maatia, juanga, malhar, bhatudi and  bhoomija.

The Damsala Nalla – the sorrow of the region
There are many natural streams flowing south from the foothills of the Daitari mountain range and north from the foothills of the Mahagiri mountain range. They empty into the Damsala Nalla at Kansha. The nalla flows down south-west for 35 kilometres before joining the Brahmani river. The Mahagiri mountain range is 300 metres above sea level and the Damsala Nalla is flowing at a height of 100 to 180 metres. The annual rainfall of this region is 2400 millimetres.

The chromite mines are located on both sides of the Damsala Nalla. People on both sides of the nalla have been dependent on its water for agriculture as well as domestic use. Around 20 natural streams from Daitari and 18 streams from Mahagiri flow into the Damsala Nalla. Most of the mines begin from the Kansha village that lies on the south of the Mahagiri mountain and continue up to the Kalarangi Atta village. The canal meets Kharkari canal here at Kalarangi Atta and flows south to the Brahmani river.

At Kalarangi Atta, a barrage has been built on the Damsala Nalla and the water is being channelled through the canal. The length of the canal is over 35 kilometres. It extends up to Bhuban village of Dhenkanal district. The following table lists the 75 villages that depend on the water of Damsala Nalla.
 

 
The waste disposals from all mining and refining activities are dumped into the Damsala Nalla. When chromium mixes with water, it turns into the toxic form of chromium hexavalent. As a result, it pollutes the Damsala Nalla, and, in turn, the Brahmani river. People have become prone to many ailments and diseases too. The wastage from the mining is gathered and piled into an artificial mountain (overburden).  When the monsoons come, the waste as well as the chromite particles from the dumps flow into the Damsala Nalla. As a result the riverbed rises.

Therefore, floods have become a reality even with moderate rainfall. As a result of chromium hexavalent making the water toxic, people in these 76 villages are affected along with soil fertility and crops being destroyed too. Chromium hexavalent has become the biggest concern of these 76 villages. The water discharged from the mines contains iron, nickel and copper particles which poses serious health hazards.

Since mining operations go down more than 100 metres, there is depletion of ground water. Most ponds and wells do not have water for half the year. Thirty streams – big and small – have dried up completely. The few remaining streams that bring water still remain dry for half the year now. The following table lists the perennial streams that have been polluted in the last many years.
 

 
Those working in the mines or settled around the mines are exposed to water contaminated with hexavalent chromium. This is the cause of many diseases:  asthma; intestinal haemorrhage; TB; kidney ailments; cancer, lung disorder, throat,  problems in eyes and nose, skin problems,  paediatric/ Uterus problems/oral /etc as a result of this pollution. Many women have gynaecological disorders that have remained untreated.

The most prominent sign of morbidity is that of people showing signs of premature ageing. According to a report of the Odisha Voluntary Health Association, 84.75% of deaths in the mining areas and 86.42% of deaths in the nearby industrial villages have taken place due to chromite mine-related diseases.  People living in a radius of 1 kilometre around the mines are most affected along with plant and animal life. As a result, 25.47% people of this area are seriously affected by PID. It can only be surmised that this toll must have deepened by now. The Annual Report of  the Indian Institute of  Water Management has categorically stated that 70% of water and 28% of soil have become unsuitable for agricultural purpose due to the high toxicity level. The fact that harvested grains and greenery are not entirely free of the toxic effects of chromium hexavalent therefore cannot be ruled out.

Years of Government Apathy

In 2007, the Blacksmith Report created a stir and the rampant pollution of the region finally got the much awaited attention. Many research institutes conducted investigations and published reports. Many reports testified the presence of toxic levels in the water.  However, it is most unfortunate that most companies have shut their eyes to this problem in their mindless pursuit of profits.

The Odisha State Pollution Control Board after refuting the Blacksmith Report has remained completely indifferent; who can the people of the region turn to? Concerned citizens of this area have repeatedly approached all levels of the administration with their grievances. But they have not got any response. All local political leaders too are aware of the serious plight of the region and its people. The local people have filed a petition in the National Green Tribunal of the Eastern Region. While the NGT issued a notice to TISCO, all other mining companies need to be made accountable too.

From the Odisha Mining Corporation to the entire range of private companies – nobody is concerned about controlling pollution.  There will soon come a time when there will be no labour left to work in these mines. At that time, Sukinda would have transformed into a desert.

List of References
 

1. Aarambha; Dec 26, 2007 ; 1 January 2008
2. Ratnakar Dhakate and V S Singh: Heavy Metal Contamination in Ground water due to mining activities in Sukinda valley, Odisha, A case Study, June 2008.
3. Vijayan Gurumuthy Aiyer and Nicose E Mastora Kiss : Unsafe Chromium and its environmental health effects of Odisha Chromite Mines
4. OSA Fact Sheet – Health Effect of Hexavalent Chromium
5. EPG Odisha: A Report on the water quality with regards to presence of hexavalent chromium in Damsala Nalla of Sukinda Mining Area
6. Annual Report , IWM, 2017-18
7. Indian Bureau of Mines: Monograph on Chromite
8. S Das and S Pattnaik: Heavy Metal Contamination – Science Direct – 2012
9. Alia Naz, Abhirup Chowdhury, BK Mishra, and SK Gupta – Human Health Risk from Drinking water: A Case Study of Sukinda; 2016.

Lambodar Mohanto is a community worker and researcher based in the area.

Contact Email Id: sukinda-matters@riseup.net

This article first appeared in the Odia journal Anwesha in Bhubaneswar. The author thanks the Anwesha team for its timely publication.

Anwesha is a quarterly journal in Odia that covers contemporary issues and reflections on politics, economy, literature, culture, caste and gender.

Courtesy: Counter Current

The post The Poisoning of Water in the Sukinda Region appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Pointing out that “only 33% urban Indians are connected to a piped sewer system and 13% – roughly 50 million urban Indians – still defecate in the open”, the report, prepared by a committee headed by India’s foremost water resources expert Dr Mihir Shah, says that “large parts of the modern cities remain unconnected to the sewage system as they live in unauthorised or illegal areas or slums, where state services do not reach.”

Noting that surveys of groundwater quality in many cities reveal “a large magnitude of water-borne pathogenic contamination – commonly referred to as bacteriological contamination – , the report insists, they signify “clear signs of groundwater contamination by sewage.”

The report, titled “A 21st Century Institutional Architecture for India’s Water Reforms Report”, comes at a time when top Niti Aayog vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya, a noted economist from the University of Columbia, has been advocating the need to encourage urbanization as fast as possible.

According to the report, however, number of people living in urban areas is expected to more than double by 2050, and “this will pose unprecedented challenges for water management in urban India”, because there is a huge demand for rapidly industrialising and urbanizing when the potential for augmenting water supply is “limited”, water tables are “falling” and water quality issues have “increasingly come to the fore.”

Insisting that “many urban stretches of rivers and lakes are overstrained and overburdened by industrial waste, sewage and agricultural runoff”, the report states, “These wastewaters are overloading rivers and lakes with toxic chemicals and wastes, consequently poisoning water resources and supplies” and the toxins find their way into “plants and animals, causing severe ecological toxicity.”

“In India, cities produce nearly 40,000 million litres of sewage every day and barely 20 percent of it is treated”, the report asserts, quoting a Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) survey as stating that “only 2% towns have both sewerage systems and sewage treatment plants.”

“Averaged for 71 cities and towns, groundwater constitutes 48% of the share in urban water supply. In India, 56 per cent of metropolitan, class-I and class-II cities are dependent on groundwater either fully or partially”, the report says.

Further noting that “unaccounted water in urban areas exceeds 50% according to the Central Ground Water Board’s report on the groundwater scenario in 28 Indian cities”, the report, which has been submitted to the Prime Minister’s Office for further action, says, “Privately driven, individualistic pumping of groundwater has led to problems of co-terminal depletion and contamination of aquifers.”

Courtesy: Counterview

The post With Only 20% of India’s City Sewage Treated; Urban Areas’ Groundwater “to turn into” Contaminated Aquifers appeared first on SabrangIndia.