NEW DELHI: The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has decided to make available scanned copies of all its old reports/documents whose soft copies are currently not available. These scanned copies can be downloaded free of cost by anyone from the pollution watchdog’s website.
Currently, all soft copies are available free of cost but the CPCB charges nominal price for hard copies of its very old publication.
The decision comes in the wake of flagging of the issue by environmentalist and retired Indian Forest Service officer, Manoj Misra, who questioned the CPCB on social media about the reason of charging money for its report.
“Find it extremely strange and unacceptable when reports of CPCB are being priced, and PDF versions, unlike before, not available online. The CPCB is a public funded institution. How can it’s reports be monetized?” asked Misra, head of the NGO Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan, on micro-blogging site twitter.
He said, “By taking these reports away from public domain, the CPCB is hampering work of researchers as well as losing credit for its work done over decades as its reports would no longer be easily available for citation purposes.”
Asked about the pollution watchdog’s move, member secretary of the CPCB, Prashant Gargava, said, “Soft (PDF) copies of some very old reports are not available. Therefore, only cover page (reflecting price) of these reports are displayed on the website. Hard copy of these publications were available for a nominal price.”
He told TOI that he has instructed the CPCB’s IT team to “try and put scanned copy of the old reports as well on the website” so that these old reports too can be downloaded free of cost.
Currently, all soft copies are available free of cost but the CPCB charges nominal price for hard copies of its very old publication.
The decision comes in the wake of flagging of the issue by environmentalist and retired Indian Forest Service officer, Manoj Misra, who questioned the CPCB on social media about the reason of charging money for its report.
“Find it extremely strange and unacceptable when reports of CPCB are being priced, and PDF versions, unlike before, not available online. The CPCB is a public funded institution. How can it’s reports be monetized?” asked Misra, head of the NGO Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan, on micro-blogging site twitter.
He said, “By taking these reports away from public domain, the CPCB is hampering work of researchers as well as losing credit for its work done over decades as its reports would no longer be easily available for citation purposes.”
Asked about the pollution watchdog’s move, member secretary of the CPCB, Prashant Gargava, said, “Soft (PDF) copies of some very old reports are not available. Therefore, only cover page (reflecting price) of these reports are displayed on the website. Hard copy of these publications were available for a nominal price.”
He told TOI that he has instructed the CPCB’s IT team to “try and put scanned copy of the old reports as well on the website” so that these old reports too can be downloaded free of cost.
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