FIR filed for dumping of toxic waste in Rajkot

RAJKOT: Gujarat pollution control board (GPCB) registered an FIR at Rajkot airport police station of dumping untreated industrial waste after incineration in acid in Hirasar village, where the new international airport is to come up.
The GPCB officials reached the spot following villagers’ complaint about polluted water hurting their crops.
In his FIR, deputy environment engineer of GPCB, Rajesh Chohan, stated that when they were informed by local police about the pollution, he and his team visited the village site on April 28 and found two workers working in a farm. When they went closer, they found that the two people were bringing hazardous untreated industrial sludge which could have been generated by various industries including food and beverages, automotive, paper and others.
The officials observed the two workers mixing the sludge with hydrochloric acid and churning it. After sometime, the sludge settled down leaving only acid on top. Thereafter, they duo poured the acid in various pits that they had dug up in the plot.
The GPCB officials also found storage of the acid waste at three places in the agriculture land besides 10,000 litre sludge in an underground tank along with five tonnes of hazardous waste lying in the open.
The two workers present at the spot were ignorant of the environmental hazard while the owner of the land Raju Patel too was not available. While cops booked the workers, they summoned Patel to the police station for interrogation.
The FIR further said, “It was a preplanned scam to release hazardous waste in open. This acid is dangerous for the environment as well as humans, animals and birds. This waste is also harmful for crops and the fertile land. We urge police to take strict actions against all responsible including industry owners, managers and officers and others.”