ANGUL: Cracking the whip, the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) has imposed a fine of Rs 54,000 on Bhusan Steel Limited in Dhenkanal district for dumping its slurry in an open ground near a village. Official sources said during an earlier inspection at the plant, it was found that ash generated from two power plants was being dumped near a village illegally.

Bhusan has two power plants of 110 MW and 300 MW capacity.

With some Central industries discharging their effluents into major rivers of the State, the Odisha Government has asked them to develop their wastewater treatment facilities.

This was stated by Forest and Environment Minister, Mr Debi Prasad Mishra, while replying a question in the Assembly.

“The State Pollution Control Board has already served show-cause notices to three Central industrial units as their waste treatment facilities are not adequate,” Mr Mishra said.

BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has asked some of the Central public sector undertakings (PSUs) to develop waste water treatment facilities as they were discharging their effluents into major rivers. Forest and Environment Minister Debiprasad Mishra informed the Assembly while replying to a question on Tuesday. “The SPCB has already served showcause notices to three Central industrial units as their waste treatment facilities are not adequate,” Mishra said replying to Ashok Chandra Panda (BJD).

New Delhi The power ministry on Monday pulled up NTPC for its slow development work in allocated captive mines, which led the coal ministry to cancel allocation last year.

“NTPC should speed up coal production from the coal blocks re-allocated to it by the coal ministry,” power secretary P Uma Shankar said here. He was addressing NTPC’s conference on operation and maintenance (O&M) of power plant.

BHUBANESWAR: With public resistance mounting over sharing of river water with industries, the State Government is making a move towards a water conservation fund by levying one time water charge on thermal power plants coming up in the State. The Water Resource Department has reportedly proposed to impose one-time water charge on thermal power projects. The funds thus generated will be exclusively utilised for water conservation works. The department proposed to levy Rs 2.5 cr per cusec of water. On an average, the water requirement of a 1000 MW coal based power plant is 40 cusecs.

BHUBANESWAR/JAJPUR: With flood situation in four North Orissa districts remaining grim, the State Government on Saturday started air-dropping of food packets as 992 villages continued to be marooned for the second consecutive day.

Meanwhile, six persons died and another went missing in flood waters. While two persons died in Jajpur district, one each died in Balasore, Bhadrak, Kendrapara and Mayurbhanj districts.

This apart, snakebite cases were reported from Kendrapara district.

Bhubaneswar: With the flood situation in northern Odisha further worsening, the state government on Sunday intensified air-dropping of food packets as 3003 villages remained marooned while the death toll climbed to 11.
While the number of marooned villages was 992 till last evening, more than 2,000 villages had been inundated overnight, revenue and disaster management minister Surya Narayan Patra said, adding that the death toll increased to 11 after five persons were swept away in flood water.

The major flood in rivers Brahmani and Baitarani has affected more than 20 lakh people in 10 districts of Orissa while many areas in the worst-affected Jajpur district have remained cut off.

Special Relief Commissioner's office said 17 persons died, mostly drowned, some of snakebite and in wall collapse — while two persons were reported missing in Angul and Keonjhar districts.

A project to set up a new railway bridge on river Brahmani has come to a halt following sheer unwillingness of the farmers at Birbhum’s Jagdhari village in the Nalhati I block area to part with their land.