Bhosari MLA Mahesh Landge on Wednesday raised the important issue of pollution of the Indrayani and Pavana rivers during the ongoing winter session of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader shared a video of his speech and wrote, "Today, the critical issue of pollution in Pavana and Indrayani rivers, lifelines of Pimpri-Chinchwad, was raised in the Vidhansabha through Lakshvedhi. Emphasising the urgency of addressing this concern, the need for the Namami Indrayani project was highlighted to the Minister (Uday Samant)."
"In response, the Minister (Samant) assured that the state government, under the Chief Minister's leadership, is actively considering the matter and concrete action will be initiated soon," he added.
Before the beginning of the winter session, Landge had pledged to raise this concerning issue in the Assembly. "We will highlight the issue of river pollution in the Legislative Assembly! #Indrayani #Pavana," he had posted on X.
The river pollution issue has sparked unrest in Pune, leading various social groups to stage protests, demanding administrative action.
Last month, environmental activists sought direct intervention from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation's (PCMC) environmental department of complacency. They urged legal action against responsible bodies like the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
These environmental advocates also engaged with Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar, and the Urban Development Department to address the pressing concerns surrounding river pollution.
Recently, the MPCB has directed the environment department of the PCMC to address the issue of industrial units polluting the Indrayani river. This action followed Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's directive to the MPCB to tackle pollution concerns ahead of the Kartiki Wari in Alandi. Prompted by Shinde's instructions, MPCB officials inspected the Indrayani river site to identify pollution sources.
Their examination revealed the discharge of untreated toxic waste, chemicals, and untreated domestic sewage from multiple industrial units in the Chikhali and Kudalwadi areas. These units were found to be discharging untreated toxic waste and sewage directly into the river, while also contributing to air pollution through illegal waste burning.
Primarily functioning as warehouses for various materials such as plastic, paper, rubber, iron, wood, plastic drums, and aluminium, these units were found to be directly discharging untreated wastewater from the cleaning processes into the Indrayani river.
Consequently, the PCMC has been directed to take strict measures against these non-compliant units and provide a comprehensive report to the MPCB.
The PCMC's environment department will present these findings to PCMC commissioner Shekhar Singh for further deliberation on an appropriate action plan.
