Chandigarh, November 5
The Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) has invoked part of the bank guarantee submitted by an ancillary unit of Maruti Suzuki at Gurgaon for its alleged failure to control pollution of the underground water.

According to Chairman of the board AS Chahal, a closure notice was served on Munal Showa Limited, an ancillary unit established in the Maruti Industrial Area, Gurgaon, under Section 33-A of the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, on July 11, 2009, after it was found that the unit was discharging highly toxic Hexavalent chrome in ground water at Sehraul village. The unit remained closed for eight days before the closure order was suspended on January 8, 2010.

The discharge of toxins led to excessive concentration into the deep aquifer of the surrounding areas, including Sehraul village, near Sector 18, Gurgaon.

The unit was asked to either submit a fixed deposit receipt of Rs 2 crore or a bank guarantee of Rs 5 crore with validity up to March 31, 2012, as performance guarantee for implementation of a remedial plan to treat the white aquifer in the surrounding area as deep as 500 ft. It was also asked to submit an affidavit in this regard.

The unit furnished a bank guarantee on July 21, 2009. It also gave an undertaking on January 8, 2010, that it would reduce chrome concentration in the underground water by 25 per cent by March 31, 2010. The unit had undertaken to reduce chrome concentration by 25 per cent every quarter to make it nil by December 31, 2010.

However, Chahal said the unit failed to comply with its undertaking. It also did not comply with the conditions laid down in the suspension of the closure order. He said the unit had obtained a stay order from the appellate authority of the board.

After the vacation of the stay order yesterday, Chahal said the board had now written to the bank, invoking 25 per cent of the bank guarantee submitted by the unit.