The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has reassessed the ₹4.8 crore environment compensation fixed by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for improper management of construction and demolition waste following the controlled implosion of four high-rises at Maradu on January 11, 2020.
The board has recalculated the environment compensation and brought it down to ₹78.05 lakh as against the ₹4.8 crore assessed by the Central board on the Maradu municipality. The CPCB had assessed the compensation at the direction of the Southern Bench of the National Green Tribunal. The tribunal had rejected an earlier assessment by the KSPCB, which claimed there were no lapses in the removal of demolition waste and hence environment compensation was zero.
The KSPCB has now said that there were errors in the calculation method adopted by the Central board, which had relied on the method adopted in a case pending before the Western Zone of the tribunal. According to the report prepared by the Chief Environmental Engineer, Ernakulam, of the board dated January 27, the values fixed for various heads under the environment compensation formula in the case before the Western Zone cannot be adopted in the Maradu case as the scenarios in the two cases were different.
The Central board has counted the number of days [of violation of norms in the Maradu case] as 1, 361, while the actual number should have been 158 days, the KSPCB said. The demolition waste was disposed of in locations including Madavana, Irumpanam, Palluruthy, Maalikampeedika, and Varapuzha through agency engaged by the municipality for proper collection and disposal. The waste from these sites was disposed of by utilising for various purposes including land filling, elevating the terrain for the construction of road and culverts, the KSPCB added.
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