Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government has closed down more than 400 stone crushers, brick kilns, and hot mix plants invoking environmental and revenue laws. The decision has sparked outrage among the owners, who cite financial losses and unemployment to their workers.
The action was taken by the Jammu and Kashmir Pollution Control Committee (JKPCC) and district magistrates against these units, most of which are located in Pulwama and Budgam districts.
The Union territory has a total of 570 brick kilns, among which the district Budgam has 225. “Of these, 144 were running illegally as they had no consent to operate, while only 81 had valid consent to operate. In the Pulwama district, out of 135 stone crushers and 27 brick kilns, 114 and 15 stone crushers and kilns, respectively, have been asked to shut down,” reads official data.
The JKPCC officials said these units lack environmental clearance certificates and revenue documents about land titles, which compelled them to take action against these units.
Per the orders of committee Secretary Ghansham Singh, stone crushers are classified as the “orange category” based on their pollution potential and activity. He said obtaining prior consent from the JKPCC was also mandatory for such units, along with the adoption of pollution control measures to achieve the prescribed standards of pollution.
Singh said these unit holders had failed to renew the consent from the J&K Pollution Control Committee as warranted under Section 25/26 of the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 and Section 21 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, respectively.
“The present status of the units can prove detrimental to human health and the environment of the area and therefore cannot be allowed to operate in the present form,” he mentioned in the slew of orders issued to stone crusher units, hot mix plants, and brick kilns.
Nazir Ahmad Mir, president of the Stone Crusher Owners Association (SCOA), said about 1000 were operating in Jammu and Kashmir. He said 550 units are set up in the Valley alone.
Mir said the majority of the units have been served closure notices by the PCC. “This closure will snatch the livelihood of more than 2000 workers and incur financial losses on the owners who have taken loans from banks to establish these units. Each unit is set up after a Rs 7 crore investment,” Mir told ETV Bharat.
Mir said the government is asking the unit holders to renew the environmental clearance certificate and revenue records as per Statutory Order (S.O.) 60 of Rule 10 of Jammu and Kashmir Stone Crushers/Hot and Wet Mixing Plants Regulation Rules.
Per the S.O. 60 of Rule 10 issued in February 2021, the owners have to get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the deputy commissioners (DCs) concerned regarding title verification of land and its usage, a prerequisite as a one-time requirement for renewal of Consent to Operate. The land title process involves verification from patwaris, then cross-checked by the tehsildars and finally approval by the DCs.
In February 2021, the lieutenant governor administration, under the promotion of Ease of Doing Business, notified the J&K Stone Crushers/Hot and Wet Mixing Plants Regulation Rules, 2021. Per these rules, stone crushers/hot and wet mixing plants were recognised as mineral-based (raw material) processing rather than mineral mining units. So these unit holders do not need to get a license from the mining department.
Rafiq Hussain Bhat, President of the Hot Mix Plant Association, said S.O. 60 was issued under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, and this notification does not apply to stone crushers and hot-mix plants, as these units operate under the Jammu and Kashmir Stone Crushers/Hot and Wet Mixing Plants Regulation Rules, 2021.
“We don't have any objection to getting NoCs from either PCC or deputy commissioners. We all have applied for it, but the only issue is a delay from officials in issuing these certificates. Getting these certificates is not worse than a punishment,” Mir said.
A stone crusher owner told ETV Bharat that he applied for the land title of his unit in 2021 after the new SO was issued. “For the last three years, I have been going to the Tehsildar office hundreds of times. My unit is operating on my proprietary land, yet the land title is not being issued,” he said, wishing to remain anonymous, fearing that going to press may further hamper his NoC issuance.
The Federation of Chambers of Industries Kashmir (FCIK) president, Shahid Kamili, told ETV Bharat that stone crushing units and hot-mix macadam plants do not need any license as per the new rules, as they are non-mining units.
“Under the pretext of non-possession of licenses under S.O. 60, the owners are now sent closure notices that deny businesses any opportunity to address the issue, despite their decades of operation,” Kamili told ETV Bharat.
Kamili warned that shutting down these units would disrupt the supply of essential aggregates like sand, gravel, and crushed stone to infrastructure projects such as roads, buildings, and bridges and hinder the macadamization of roads.
SCOA president Mir said that when the units were classified as "orange" under environmental norms, the renewal Consent to Operate is given for 10 years as per the norms set by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB).
“However, it is regrettable that the JKPCC only issues renewals for two years to these units, without providing any clear explanation, despite their website stating that renewals should be valid for eight years,” he said.
Read More
