Pollution Act violation not proved, court acquits unit owner

The Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chandigarh, has acquitted an industry owner in a complaint registered for violation of the pollution norms after the Chandigarh Pollution Control Committee (CPCC) has failed to prove the charges.

The CPCC in the complaint filed before the court said that Ashok Kumar, proprietor, M/s Electrical Control and Switch Gears, had been running a manufacturing unit of electrical panels at Makhan Majra village, UT, without getting the consent of a competent authority.

It further said the accused did not obtain prior consent of the CPCC to operate the unit in terms of Section 21 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and Section 25 and 26 of Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. It said the accused had applied for consent to operate vide application dated February 1, 2016, wherein, it was admitted that he was running the said unit w.e.f. March, 2015.

After hearing the arguments the court said that the complaint had been filed only on the basis of an application moved by the accused seeking permission to establish and operate the unit. It said there was nothing on record to prove that the accused had actually established the unit and it also remained unproven that any visit was conducted on the premises of the accused by the complainant. As such, the complaint was liable to be dismissed and the accused acquitted, it added.