High level committee to check ''Industrial pollution'' in J

Jammu, Feb 18 (UNI) The Jammu and Kashmir Government today set up a high-level committee to check industrial pollution after people staged demonstrations and block the National Highway in Kathua district yesterday.

Shouting slogans against the Pollution Control Board (PCB), the agitating people alleged that despite raising the issue number of times, no action was taken to check growing industrial pollution in the town.

''Despite being aware of the fact that majority of the industrial units have not installed pollution control gadgets, no action was taken so far'', said the protestors who blocked the Jammu-Lakhanour National Highway for about three hours.

They also clashed with the police when they were barred from heading towards the National Highway as Section 144 CrPC has been imposed on the highway by the civil administration.

Ten people including four cops were injured.

Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Minister for Power, Babu Singh, reached the spot and assured that a monitoring committee with representatives of Anti-Pollution Movement and officers of the Pollution Control Board (PCB), SICOP and Industries Department as its member would be set up to look into the problem.

The Committee headed by the Minister for Power decided to issue notices to all the industrial units with the directions to install pollution control devices within a period of one month.

UNI VBH PJ MIR KP1546