The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Tuesday fined the Delhi government with Rs 50 crore for failing to act against steel pickling units.
The unit are being run in residential areas despite falling under the prohibited list of industrial activity as per the Delhi Master Plan (DMP), 2021.
A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel rapped the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government for not closing the industrial units despite its specific directions.
The NGT also directed the Delhi government to shut these units with immediate effect.
The order came on a plea filed by an NGO, the All India Lokadhikar Sangthan, seeking the execution of an order by which the green panel had directed the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to take action against the stainless steel pickling industries.
The plea claimed that such units functioning at Wazirpur discharged effluent in open drains, which ultimately met Yamuna river.
Pickling is the process of removing impurities such as stains and inorganic contaminants from metals.
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