The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (PCB) has assessed a total environment compensation of about ₹1.12 crore on the waste generators and their collection agencies responsible for the illegal dumping of biomedical and other types of waste at various places in Tamil Nadu’s Tirunelveli district in December 2024.
Notices have been issued to the violators asking why the environment compensation should not be collected for violation of the various environmental laws. The issue had ignited a controversy after huge quantity of biomedical, food, and plastic waste were dumped in six villages in Tirunelveli.
The Southern Bench of the National Green Tribunal, which took suo motu notice of the media reports on the illegal waste dumping, had asked the Kerala government to remove the waste and initiate stringent action against the violators.
Anaction taken report dated January 18, 2025, submitted by the Special Secretary, Department of Environment, before the tribunal said that ₹44.55 lakh had been imposed as environment compensation on Sunage Eco Systems Pvt Ltd, which was engaged in the collection of waste from Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, and Kovalam Resorts Pvt Ltd (The Leela Kovalam). The board has revoked the registration issued to the unit for violating the norms.
A notice dated January 17, 2025, was issued to the Leela Kovalam fixing an environment compensation of ₹51 lakh. The consent provided by the board to the establishment for waste management has been revoked on charges of giving mixed waste to the collecting agency and improper segregation of waste in violation of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. The hotel authorities had informed the board that additional facilities are being set up to ensure compliance of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
The board has assessed an environment compensation of ₹10.06 lakh on the Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram. The inspections carried out by the board revealed that the centre have an agreement with the Sunage Ecosystems Pvt Ltd. It has also issued the order to revoke the consent issued to the centre, according to the report.
Mixed waste
The board has assessed an environment compensation of ₹6.9 lakh on Credence Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, which had engaged an agency approved by the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation for the disposal of paper and food waste. An order to revoke the consent provided by the board was issued on January 16 for giving mixed waste to the collection agency, which lacked registration/consent of the board and for violation of the Solid Waste Management Rules and Biomedical Waste Management Rules, 2016, as per the report by the Department of Environment.
Published – January 29, 2025 06:32 pm IST
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