Residents meet DC over ice factory

FEROZEPUR: Following the explosion in a firecracker factory in Batala, which left 23 persons dead and several others injured, residents of Zira gate area in Ferozepur have complained to the administration against an ice factory for using ammonia in violation of rules, that was posing risk to their lives. A delegation of the residents met the Ferozepur DC on Thursday to apprise him of their concerns about the ice factory running in the area.
Residents of the locality alleged the Guru Nanak Ice Factory was running in a thickly-populated area outside Zira gate without getting the approval from the authorities concerned. The residents further alleged that they had complained about the ice factory several times but nothing had been done to relocate the unit.
According to information, ice factories and cold storages using ammonia cannot run without getting the approval.
Earlier, on the complaint of the residents, the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) had issued a show-cause notice to the ice factory. As the factory owner failed to submit the land use pattern, the board ordered closure of the factory on February 11. Subsequently, electricity supply to the factory was disconnected. However, it was restored on May 27, allegedly under political pressure. The residents have requested the PPCB and the local administration to take immediate action and order closure of the ice factory to safeguard lives of hundred of people living in the vicinity.