Hyderabad: Political interference is a major reason behind the lethargic functioning of Telangana State Pollution Control Board, its own officials say. As part of a research, ‘Environmental policies and practices in India towards industrial pollution’, Dr B. Ramalingam of the department of public administration, Telangana University, interviewed 65 polultion board officials.
Most officials cited political interference as a major hurdle in efficient functioning of the board, apart from conceding that there was need for a sustained awareness campaign against industrial pollution involving civil society members, citizens, NGOs, environmentalists and scientists.
Dr Ramalingam found that a majority of the people have their hopes pinned on environmentalists and NGOs to fight industrial pollution and have almost no faith in the TSPCB and industries. He found that over 96 per cent of respondents he interviewed believed that board officials were corrupt.
The researcher interviewed 315 residents staying close to industrial areas in the GHMC and found that while 60 per cent of the respondents said civil society and NGOs were playing a key role to enhance environmental safety and protection, only 29 per cent lauded the efforts of government organisations in controlling pollution.
Over 73 per cent of respondents complained that government agencies were not taking appropriate action against polluting units, 6.6 per cent felt that industries were taking steps to check pollution control by deploying modern technology.
