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| Scum and industrial waste arrest the flow of Subernarekha near Bhuiyandih on Monday. Picture by Bhola Prasad |
Hope is floating for a poisoned Subernarekha.
Pulled up by a pollution probe panel, Tata Steel has, finally, submitted a detailed report on its effluent discharge into the river, prompting a decision for fresh toxicity sampling by experts to draw up remedial measures for the threatened Kolhan lifeline.
Seraikela DFO A.T. Mishra — who is also the chairman of the four-member panel constituted by Kolhan divisional commissioner Avinash Kumar to probe into Subernarekha pollution — confirmed that they had received a 15-page report on waste water release by Tata Steel on Saturday.
“We are studying the report. Fresh samples of effluents will now be collected and sent for laboratory tests under our supervision. We will arrive at a conclusion and table our findings before the Kolhan commissioner only after matching the two reports,” Mishra said.
The three effluent discharge points as mentioned in the Tata Steel report are near Garam Nullah in Sakchi and Sunsunia Gate and Hot Strip Mill Gate at Burmamines. Officials, however, refused to divulge details and just said that the company had contended that all its effluents were treated and were hence not hazardous.
The probe team will, however, meet within a week to discuss further sampling of effluents and sending them for tests to an accredited laboratory outside the state after consultation with the regional office of Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JSPCB).
This special committee, headed by Mishra, was formed on January 19 with JSPCB regional officer R.N. Choudhury, Gamharia circle officer Lakhi Charan Baske and chief engineer of Subernarekha Multi-Purpose Project (Chandil) Brajmohan Kumar as its members. Following complaints from various quarters, it had dashed a letter to Tata Steel on February 13, asking the company to identify outlets, from where waste water were released into the river, within a month.
The panel has also decided to accommodate findings of individuals and social organisations in its final report. “Any person or organisation can inform us, with proof, that the river is being polluted. We will probe the matter without disclosing identities and include our findings in the final report to be submitted to the commissioner,” Mishra said.
Kolhan commissioner Avinash Kumar said remedial action would depend on this report. “We will first examine the report and then decide what steps need to be taken to check pollution in the river,” he said.
After originating near Ranchi, the river traverses a long distance of around 308km through Ranchi, Seraikela-Kharsawan and East Singhbhum districts in the state. It then flows through West Midnapore (Bengal) for 83km and Balasore (Odisha) for 79km before joining the Bay of Bengal near Talsari. The total length of the river is 470km, while the probe panel is, currently, monitoring a 125km stretch of Subernarekha between Chandil and Baharagora.
Notably, a PIL on river encroachment and pollution filed by BJP leader Sarayu Roy is pending in Jharkhand High Court.
