Manipur Pollution Control Board (MPCB) chairman Usham Deben on Tuesday called upon people's participation to control pollution in the state and said that modified motorbike silencers will be banned soon.
Addressing the media in Imphal, Deben said that cooperation from the general public is highly required to control pollution in the state, besides the measures to control pollution in every sector.
In the state, many youths are riding motorcycles by modifying the silencers which produce loud sounds that cause noise pollution, Deben said, adding that such modified silencers that cause noise pollution will be banned in the state.
There are various complaints concerning air pollution, noise pollution, etc. from the general public. To address their grievances, the pollution board will launch a website soon, he said.
Regarding air pollution in the state, Deben said that at present, none of the towns in Manipur are included in the list of non-attainment cities according to CPCB 2018 report.
Non-attainment cities are those cities where the air pollution level exceeds the national ambient air quality standards for four years consecutively, he said.
It is feared that air pollution level in Manipur may exceed the standards in the coming years. At present, the board has installed 12 Ambient Air Quality Monitoring Stations, namely at Imphal West-3, Imphal East-2, Kaching-1, Bishnupur-1, Thoubal-1, Jiribam-1, Kangpokpi-1, Churachandpur-1, Tengnoupal-1.
Of the 12, only one manual ambient air quality monitoring station at MPCB is fully functional, he said.
The remaining 11 are not fully functional, he further said, adding the manual ambient air quality monitoring station for the 11 stations will be made fully functional through engagement of qualified staff from the year. There will be no financial burden on the state government for the engagement of the staff, he said.
He also said that two continuous ambient air quality monitoring stations capable of displaying data on a real time basis are installed at DM University Campus and MU Campus. The stations will now be made fully functional from this year, he said.
Regarding water pollution of the state, Usham Deben said that the Central Pollution Control Board has identified nine polluted stretches for Manipur, and the state government is taking steps to rejuvenate the rivers. There are 70 water quality monitoring stations in the state including rivers, ponds, lakes, and groundwater. The main aim is to monitor whether the biological oxygen demands (BOD) level is maintained below 3mg/L.
The board will propose new monitoring stations of Leimakhong river, Tupul river, Kongba river, he said.
Concerning Plastic Waste Management, Manipur Plastic Policy, 2022 notified by the state government incorporates an action plan for plastic waste management, he said. In the state, plastic carry bags less than 75 microns in thickness have been banned with effect from September 20, 2021; plastic carry bags less than 120 microns in thickness with effect from December 31, 2021, he said.
Non-woven plastic carry bags less than 60g per square meter (GSM) are also banned following the ban on Single-Use Plastic (SUPs), polythene and expanded polystyrene commodities with effect from July 1, 2022. Earbuds with plastic sticks, plastic sticks for balloons, plastic flags, candy sticks, ice-cream sticks, polystyrene for decoration; PET or PETE bottles less than 1 litre capacity for holding drinking water etc., are also banned, he added.
Regarding industrial pollution control, major polluting units in the state are 97 brick fields; 41 stone crushers and 15 hotels. The units are monitored for compliance of prescribed standards, he said. Steps are being taken so that the brick fields comply with the new standards prescribed by MoEF and CC, he added
He said that there are complaints against brick fields, stone crushers and saw mills for polluting surrounding villages, for which he will initiate action soon, he added.
There is only one chairman of the board, and the previous chairman had completed his term, Deben said while clarifying the general public about the reported existence of two board chairmen.
