HYDERABAD: Confronting widespread environmental degradation, state authorities have launched a renewed crackdown on pharmaceutical bulk drug industries in the Choutuppal–Chityal belt, where groundwater contamination, air pollution and damage to agricultural lands continue to impact thousands of residents.
According to a reliable source, the pollution crisis, stemming from 46 pharmaceutical units across Choutuppal, Pochampally, Bibinagar and Chityal mandals, was the focus of a high-level review meeting held recently at the Secretariat. The meeting came in response to years of community complaints over deteriorating air and water quality, which have previously led to court cases, closure orders and hefty penalties.
While authorities have distributed compensation to affected farmers and initiated corrective measures, several non-compliant industries were directed to deposit environmental compensation. Meanwhile expert-led inspections have intensified surveillance of pollution hotspots. Air quality monitoring stations have been installed, and industries have been instructed to adopt greater transparency in waste management practices.
Officials presented a detailed compliance report highlighting the penalties imposed, closure actions taken, ongoing litigation before the National Green Tribunal and compensation distributed to farmers. The Telangana Pollution Control Board (TGPCB) emphasised the use of NABL-accredited laboratories and adherence to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines for environmental sampling and analysis.
Improved monitoring mechanisms were reviewed, including computerised allocation of inspections, GPS tracking for effluent tankers and night patrolling to prevent illegal discharge. The government has also sanctioned projects for dredging and decontaminating polluted lakes, alongside infrastructure upgrades for hazardous waste management.
Fines to help develop hospital, laboratory
Plans were also advanced to establish a super speciality hospital, new offices and enhanced laboratory facilities, funded through the environmental compensation corpus collected from polluting industries.
Strict directives were issued to industry representatives for regular effluent disposal, segregation of high and low TDS waste, full implementation of Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) systems, odour control measures, installation of online VOC and pH monitoring systems linked to the board’s servers and completion of Leak Detection and Repair (LDAR) studies.
Officials took serious note of the absence of several industry heads and ordered issuance of notices to ensure their attendance in future meetings.
The review also discussed relocating highly polluting units outside urban zones and forming dedicated industrial clusters to reduce the health and environmental burden on nearby communities. Special focus was placed on remediating contaminated water bodies, farmlands and air quality across the affected areas.