NGT directs sugar mill to pay ₹1.6 cr for environmental damage, crop loss

Mumbai: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed TwentyOne Sugar Factory Ltd, controlled by Congress leader Amit Deshmukh, to pay over ₹1.67 crore towards compensation for environmental damage and crop loss.

“Respondent No1 (sugar factory) shall deposit the amount of EDC (environmental damage compensation) of ₹1,13,40,000 with the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) within a period of two months from the date of uploading of this order,” the NGT stated in its order dated April 30. The order, accessed by HT, says the money will be used for restoration of the area in question within a period of six months.

Deshmukh is the chairman of TwentyOne Sugar Factory Ltd situated in Nanded district.

The tribunal also ordered TwentyOne Sugar to pay ₹54,43,955 to the Nanded district collector towards compensation for 31 farmers who lost their crops owing to discharge of effluents and pollutants from the factory. The money will be disbursed among the affected farmers, the order stated.

The tribunal was hearing a plea filed jointly by 31 farmers, who accused the factory of violating consent conditions by discharging effluents/ pollutants without suitable treatment, polluting the nearby agricultural land, streams and the environment. The farmers had sought compensation for their losses and a bar on crushing by the factory till remedial measures were taken.

During the course of hearing the petition over the past two years, the tribunal formed two joint committees — to assess environmental damage and applicable penalties, and to compute losses to farmer and applicable compensation.

The joint committee on assessing environmental damage found several violations of environmental laws by the sugar factory. Its report listed the violations as – resuming manufacturing activities without obtaining mandatory consent to operate from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board; continued manufacturing activities without installation of condensate polishing unit; discharge of effluent and emission more than the prescribed standards; and accidental discharge of effluent/spray pond effluent into environment.

The applicable penalties were found to be ₹1,19,40,000.

“Specific penalties include ₹11,70,000 for operating without mandatory consent and ₹46,50,000 for not installing required treatment units. Additional penalties for exceeding effluent discharge standards and accidental discharges into the environment,” the report noted.

The tribunal’s order was based on the reports of the two joint committees.

In their defence, the factory informed a joint committee on December 21, 2023 that they had taken over the factory from Venkateshwara Agro Sugar Products Pvt Ltd and the DVP Group (Dharashiv Sakhar Karkhana Unit III). The new owners augmented the existing environment management system (EMS) at a cost of ₹7.92 crore by implementing various measures in process, effluent and emission management, it told the committee.

HT tried to contact Deshmukh for his comments, but he remained unavailable.