GURUGRAM: As the city chokes on high pollution levels, the regional office of Haryana State Pollution Control Board HSPCB ) has not inspected any factory in the district to check emissions because it has "received no order from the head office". The National Green Tribunal has directed pollution control boards in Delhi-NCR to only allow industries that follow emission standards to operate after a verification."We have not received the head office's permission yet to conduct inspection of industries. Also, all industries in the city have already got the consent to operate (CTO). The consent is granted after the inspection of emission standards. We, therefore, can't inspect the industries which have received CTO again without receiving a directive from the head office," said an HSPCB official.Asking state pollution bodies to allow the industries, which follow green norms to cut pollution, to operate, the NGT bench had said, "We clarify that industries manufacturing essential commodities like eatables have been exempted from the prohibiting orders. We also direct that the industries whose emissions are within the prescribed parameters and which are non-polluting and compliant with the directions can operate, subject to verification."An official at the HSPCB head office, "We are working on a mechanism to carry out the verification of polluting industries. We will immediately issue the necessary directions, if required."The HSPCB gives different emission standards for 17 types of industries, which include aluminium manufacturing units, asbestos industry, bagasse fired boilers, battery manufacturing units, boilers, brick kilns, cement industry, ceramic industry, coal washeries, cupola furnace, diesel generator sets, foundries, hospitals, large pulp & paper industry, oil refineries, stone-crushing units, and thermal power plants (naptha based).The HSPCB gives consent to establish (CTE) and CTO on the basis of test reports of sample of air emission under the provisions of Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, and Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. The polluting industries are categorised as red, orange and green. The CTO's validity is five years in case of red category, 10 years in case of orange category and 15 years in case of green category. Gurgaon has 833 polluting industries, all in red (highly polluting) and orange (polluting) category.

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