Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has issued a notice to the Chief Engineer of Khaparkheda Thermal Power Station on Tuesday asking him to remove entire accumulated ash in Nandgaon ash pond and restore/rejuvenate the pond to achieve its original state of land within 15 days.
Issuing the notice, A K Kare, Regional Officer, MPCB, Nagpur, also asked to submit a weekly report of the activities taken up and deposit bank guarantee of Rs 20 lakh.
The issuance of notice is the result of hint given by Aditya Thackeray, Minister for Environment, Tourism and Climate Change, during the visit a day before to Nandgaon ash pond. He said audit of all measures for pollution control by power stations would be done and that those failed to maintain standard would face action.
The board has asked the Chief Engineer for utilisation of ash from the pone be done for eco-friendly use. The transportation of pond ash should be done in a covered condition to avoid further emission during transportation. It also asked to remove existing infrastructure, including pipelines laid for disposal of the ash into the pond permanently within 15 days and to stop deposal of ash generated from the Khaparkheda TPS into Waregaon ash pond immediately.