Pollution Control Board reverses ACC decision
ACC has resumed production on Tuesday at its old plant, which had been closed down recently following directives from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) for violation of pollution standards. The company authorities have somehow managed to obtain permission from MPCB headquarters to restart the old plant, and accordingly the plant was restarted after forty days of closure.
The over 30-year-old cement plant of ACC Limited having production capacity of 0.9Mta was forced to shut down on November 30, 2010, for violating pollution standards. The company was under the scanner of MPCB authorities after Ghugus area was included in the critically polluted category by Central Pollution Control Board.
Pollution control officials had in repeated surveys found the plant operating in violation of pollution standards and warnings were issued to the plant management to comply with pollution norms. The bank guarantee of the company had been forfeited thrice by MPCB for non-compliance over 2010, and finally the management was forced to shut down its old plant on November 30. Strong directives had also been issued, stating that "in no case further extension will be granted for running the old plant", in the closure notice issued by MPCB.
The company has erected a new plant with capacity of 2.46Mta in the same premises and its commissioning is in the offing. There were plans to commission the new plant with the closure of the old plant, however due to some pending works, the ACC management failed to commission the new plant in time. The project has been delayed by at least six months. Published under Cement News
