Sanjay Kumar Aggarwal, CBI Special Judge of TIs Hazari Court, Delhi upholding the principle of Polluters Pay has imprisoned for two years owner of Haryana Paneer Bhandar for discharging all the effluents from the washing of sweet, namkeen preparation or from floor washing into the public sewer without any treatment.
The appellant has been convicted by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and sentenced him to undergo a simple imprisonment for the period of three years and with a fine of Rs 1 lakh under the Water Act.
The act under section 25(1)(a) prohibits establishment of any industry, operation, process or any system of treatment or disposal which will discharge the sewage or trade effluent without the prior consent of State Pollution Control Board into the stream. The section and the act provides that the approval of state government is mandatory before carrying on such establishment.
In the instant case the sweet manufacturer could not bring any evidence to show that the consent has been obtained by the state government for running of the industry. The manufacturer or the appellant further agreed that the area under his possession was being used as kitchen/manufacturing/storing of raw material and the municipal sewer line was connected to kitchen.
The conviction was done under the section 24 and 25 of the act. Section 24 deals with the discharge of polluting matter in the stream, The laboratory report for prosecuting under the section 24 was not required by the court in this matter. The court held that running of sweet industry is enough evidence in this case as sweet industry or industry dealing in dairy product is highly polluting industry.
The CBI Judge commuted the sentence of the manufacturer to two years from the three years awarded to him by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate without altering the fine. The CBI special judge however directed the appellant to pay compensation of Rs 2.5 lakhs by way of contributing the same to PM Relief Fund.
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