The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) is expanding its list of 17 heavily polluting industrial sectors to 24, although it has failed to enforce compliance from the units already under the highly polluting category. A recent CPCB status report on the action taken to control pollution in "problem areas" points out that these units have defaulted against the December 1993 deadline of implementing the pollution control plans prepared by the authorities.

"With the CPCB unable to clean up units even in the priority control areas of the 17 highly polluting sectors, adding more industries to the list is of doubtful value," says a member of World Wide Fund for Nature's pollution division. However, according to B Sengupta, senior scientist at the CPCB, "By adding industrial sectors such as lead smelting and electroplating to our list, the state pollution control boards (SPCBs) will have another tool for effective monitoring Problem areas In 1990, the CPCB identified 22 problem areas in the country on the basis of public complaints, ambient air and water quality data, recommendations of the SPCBs and Parliament questions on the severity of pollution in specific areas. Following intensive surveys, timebound action programmes for management of the problem areas were evolved for 14 areas including Chembur in Maharashtra, Vapi in Gujarat, Digboi in Assam and Korba in Madhya Pradesh.

Under a 15-point action plan issued by the Union ministry of environment and forests (MEF) in February 1991, attention was given only to the large and medium industries of the 17 highly polluting sectors. Following an MEF notification in February 1992, the target dates to control pollution were set at December 31, 1992, for industries commissioned after May 1981, and December 31, 1993, for those commissioned before that date. Thus, of the 85 polluting industrial units in the 14 problem areas, priority was given to the 40 that belong to the 17 heavily polluting categories.

The industries were made responsible for implementing the pollution control measures, along with the SPCBs boards and the municipal councils. Says Sengupta, "Closing down industries for not adhering to pollution control laws is almost impossible. Instead, under the action plans, step-by-step measures for achieving pollution standards are detailed and the industries' cooperation gained." However, the Board is yet to initiate action against the 26 industrial units identified in the recently published status report as defaulters against the deadlines set for meeting the CPCB standards.