BHUBANESWAR: Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) is set to take steps to realise the Rs 71 crore penalty imposed on Vedanta Limited for illegally dumping fly ash at different places in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and Sundargarh.
A senior OSPCB officer on Friday said, the penalty was imposed after it was established that the company was dumping fly ash in violation of norms.
“After the board’s show cause notice in August, Vedanta had presented its case in the first hearing. The proceedings of the case will be submitted to the chief secretary, who is the chairman of OSPCB. Once it is approved by the chairman, the company will be asked to deposit the money.”
The officer said, strict action will be taken against dumping of fly ash in violation of the rules. The district administrations have been asked to ensure there is no random dumping of fly ash by any company.
Congress MLA from Rajgangpur, CS Raazen Ekka on Thursday had demanded in the Assembly that action should be taken against Vedanta Limited for violating the consent-to-operate (CTO) given to its captive and thermal power plants at Sripura village in Jharsuguda by illegally dumping fly ash at various places in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and Sundargarh districts without the approval of OSPCB.
Ekka had pointed out that a notice issued by the OSPCB to Vedanta Limited on August 7 this year stated that the regional offices of the board at Rourkela, Jharsuguda and Sambalpur have received a number of public complaints in this regard. He said as per the notice served on Vedanta, it was estimated that around 7,11,653.32 tonne of unauthorised fly ash have been disposed of by the unit, and a fine of `71.16 crore was levied on the company.
The board had directed Vedanta to show cause within 15 days from the date of issue of the notice as to why the environmental compensation of `71.16 crore will not be imposed and the CTO withdrawn. Though the 15-day period was over, no action has been initiated against the company, the Congress MLA had alleged.