KANPUR: National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered the sealing of 78 tanneries in Unnao and Banthar on May 29. A joint report by a team of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) was submitted to the NGT, based on which the tribunal passed its verdict. The team had conducted a probe on the samples collected from the tanneries from May 20-24 which indicated that they were flouting pollution control norms. Examination of the samples displayed presence of chromium above the set standard which was over 2 mg/liter. In Kanpur only, 260 tanneries had already been shut down in compliance with the Tribune’s orders and around 700 are still operational, with over 4 lakh people working in the leather industry in Kanpur. The untreated waste effluents emitted by such factories are polluting Ganga, as the waste is directly disposed into the river.
Kanpur Tannery Association, however, claim that they have been operating under the directions of the state government and NGT. Also, Taj Alam, president of the UP Leather Association, said, “Even if all 700-odd tanneries are shut down, effluents will still continue to pollute the Ganga as the problem does not end with us. We discharge merely 15 to 20 per cent effluents, while the rest is untreated domestic sewage. Apart from the leather industry, as many as 30,000 small and medium enterprises consisting of battery plants, chemical and detergent units, dyeing units, textile mills and metallurgical units are situated on various small towns on the banks of the Ganga. It is only the leather business which is being targeted.”