BHUBANESWAR: Congress MLA from Rajgangpur CS Raazen Ekka on Thursday 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 Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB).
Raising the issue during zero hour in the Assembly, Ekka said inaction of the authorities on the matter has created an impression that officials of the state government and OSPCB are hand in glove with Vedanta in illegal dumping of fly ash which has created health and environmental issues in three districts.
Ekka said a notice issued by the OSPCB to Vedanta Limited on August 7, 2024 stated that the regional offices of the Board at Rourkela, Jharsuguda and Sambalpur have received a number of public complaints in this regard. Besides, letters have been forwarded by the administration of the districts concerned regarding unauthorised dumping of fly ash by the unit without prior permission from the Board.
The Congress MLA said as per the notice, an internal committee meeting of the Board was held on August 3 to scrutinise the complaints and the inspection reports of regional officers. It was established that the unit is disposing fly ash at various places in Jharsuguda, Sambalpur and Sundargarh without prior approval from the Board.
Ekka further said the fly ash notification of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change stipulates that an environmental compensation of Rs 1,000 per tonne on unutilised ash will be imposed against non-compliant thermal power plants.
Ekka 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. After deliberation, it was decided to levy a fine of Rs 71.16 crore on the company.
The board directed Vedanta to show cause within 15 days from the date of issue of the notice as to why the environmental compensation of Rs 71.16 crore will not be imposed and CTO withdrawn. The company was also asked to submit a detailed action plan for removal of the dumped solid waste and rejuvenation of the alleged sites.
The Congress MLA alleged that though the 15-day period was over, no action has been initiated against the company.