Quantitative data from hospitals on diseases to determine India's new pollution norms, not "eco-geological factors"

In a major move to “undermine” Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index (CEPI), which was calculated for determining whether a particular region complies with environmental norms or not, the Government of India is all set to drop what are called “eco-geological factors” to determine pollution norms.

The eco-geological factors such factors which were calculated till the Narendra Modi government came to power included such norms as how air and water pollutants were affecting water bodies (rivers, lakes and ponds), ecological parks, sanctuaries, ecologically sensitive zones and buildings or monuments of historical, archaeological or religious significance.
According to informed sources, the new norms which under active consideration for inclusion would include, instead, the real-time observed values of the pollutants in the ambient air, surface water and groundwater in and around the industrial clusters, and not on how they affect eco-geological regions.
Also, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change will be seeking health related data from hospitals in order to determine if health hazards of an industrial cluster are harmful.
For instance, said a report, for measuring air pollution, experts will consider the total number of hospital cases related to asthma, bronchitis, respiratory cancer, and acute respiratory infections, and the same would apply for checks on other types of pollution – diarrhea will suggest whether water in a particular region is polluted, for instance.
Environmentalist Sanjay Upadhyay, an advocate with the Supreme Court, believes this would completely “remove” any aspect of qualitative data and make the assessment “purely quantitative”, at a time when both are important.
Upadhyay has been quoted as saying, “It is unfortunate that CPCB is trying to dilute the CEPI parameters. In my view both qualitative and quantitative criteria are equally important.”
While the government believes that the new hospital-based norm will take care of 80 per cent of emissions from industrial sector and will bring transparency in implementation of pollution control regulations, environmentalists say the “dilution” was being done to help industry to do business in India without caring for pollution norms.
No sooner Narendra Modi took over as the Prime Minister of India in 2014, the Government of India did away with CEPI and dropped the classification of severely polluted and critically polluted industrial clusters, removing the ban imposed on industrialization of several clusters, including Vapi and Ankaleshwar in South Gujarat.
Under the classification effective before Modi came to power, 59 industries scored CEPI of between 60 and 100 points, and were classified “red”, or severely polluted, followed by orange, qualified as critically polluted.

Dropping this methodology as “subjective”, there is a strong view that this is part of the effort to undermine people’s consent while going ahead with any industrial project. Already, moves are underway to amend the Forest Rights Act to remove the necessity for prior informed consent of local Gram Sabhas in forest areas and the exemption coal mining companies from public hearings.

Comments

Dalit rights and political tensions: Why is Mevani at odds with Congress leadership?

While I have known Jignesh Mevani, one of the dozen-odd Congress MLAs from Gujarat, ever since my Gandhinagar days—when he was a young activist aligned with well-known human rights lawyer Mukul Sinha’s organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch—he became famous following the July 2016 Una Dalit atrocity, in which seven members of a family were brutally assaulted by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes while skinning a dead cow, a traditional occupation among Dalits.

Powering pollution, heating homes: Why are Delhi residents opposing incineration-based waste management

While going through the 50-odd-page report Burning Waste, Warming Cities? Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Incineration and Urban Heat in Delhi , authored by Chythenyen Devika Kulasekaran of the well-known advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability, I came across a reference to Sukhdev Vihar — a place where I lived for almost a decade before moving to Moscow in 1986 as the foreign correspondent of the daily Patriot and weekly Link .

Boeing 787 under scrutiny again after Ahmedabad crash: Whistleblower warnings resurface

A heart-wrenching tragedy has taken place in Ahmedabad. As widely reported, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane crashed shortly after taking off from the city’s airport, currently operated by India’s top tycoon, Gautam Adani. The aircraft was carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members. As expected, the crash has led to an outpouring of grief across the country. At the same time, there have been demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Civil Aviation Minister.

Ahmedabad's civic chaos: Drainage woes, waterlogging, and the illusion of Olympic dreams

In response to my blog on overflowing gutter lines at several spots in Ahmedabad's Vejalpur, a heavily populated area, a close acquaintance informed me that it's not just the middle-class housing societies that are affected by the nuisance. Preeti Das, who lives in a posh locality in what is fashionably called the SoBo area, tells me, "Things are worse in our society, Applewood."

Global NGO slams India for media clampdown during conflict, downplays Pakistan

A global civil rights group, Civicus has taken strong exception to how critical commentaries during the “recent conflict” with Pakistan were censored in India, with journalists getting “targeted”. I have no quarrel with the Civicus view, as the facts mentioned in it are all true.

Whither SCOPE? Twelve years on, Gujarat’s official English remains frozen in time

While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

Remembering Vijay Rupani: A quiet BJP leader who listened beyond party lines

Late evening on June 12, a senior sociologist of Indian origin, who lives in Vienna, asked me a pointed question: Of the 241 persons who died as a result of the devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad the other day, did I know anyone? I had no hesitation in telling her: former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, whom I described to her as "one of the more sensible persons in the BJP leadership."

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Why India’s renewable energy sector struggles under 2,735 compliance hurdles

Recently, during a conversation with an industry representative, I was told how easy it is to set up a startup in Singapore compared to India. This gentleman, who had recently visited Singapore, explained that one of the key reasons Indians living in the Southeast Asian nation prefer establishing startups there is because the government is “extremely supportive” when it comes to obtaining clearances. “They don’t want to shift operations to India due to the large number of bureaucratic hurdles,” he remarked.

Search This Blog