CHANDIGARH: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has pulled up the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) for extreme negligence in enforcing environmental laws, revealing a massive failure to impose ₹949.27 crore in environmental compensation. The regulatory breakdown pertains to the discharge of untreated and partially treated sewage into the state’s water bodies.
The damning findings, covering the period from 2019-20 to 2023-24, were officially tabled before the state Assembly. Beyond the unlevied penalties, the audit disclosed that the HSPCB has also failed to collect ₹214.26 crore out of ₹264.76 crore in penalties previously imposed on 650 polluting industrial and commercial units.
Under the Water Act of 1974, the HSPCB holds the statutory duty to monitor sewage management. Despite strict 2019 National Green Tribunal (NGT) directives mandating a 100% treatment rate, the CAG audit across eight key districts—including Gurugram, Faridabad, and Panipat—found that 32.14% of the daily generated sewage (489.47 MLD out of 1,522.83 MLD) flowed completely untreated. Furthermore, 26 Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and two Common Effluent Treatment Plants (CETPs) breached safety standards for up to 1,312 days without facing any of the mandated ₹46.30 crore penalties. The board officially acknowledged the recovery crisis, which is most severe in Gurugram North, Ballabhgarh, and Sonepat, where up to 92.52% of recoveries remain frozen.
