Gurgaon: The industry body has sought a one-month extension to comply with a new air pollution monitoring mandate. Days after Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) issued an order pertaining to the industries in the National Capital Region (NCR), Gurgaon Chamber of Commerce & Industry (GCCI) president Vikas Jain has requested CAQM to extend the deadline to Nov 30.On Oct 5, CAQM directed industries to install pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras covering all fuel storage areas and fuel charging points. Units using gas-based fuel must also position cameras to capture the gas gauge or meter. Video feeds must be streamed in real time to the servers of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the respective state pollution control boards or Delhi Pollution Control Committee. Industries must also ensure adequate power backup for cameras and connectivity, it said. The order requires CPCB and state pollution control boards or DPCC to develop the portals and infrastructure needed to receive the live feeds. The commission has asked the pollution control authorities to submit the compliance status on Nov 1.On Oct 9, GCCI, in a letter to CAQM, said it supports the objective of tighter monitoring, but the additional requirements involve considerable expenditure, manpower and logistical work. It said the deadline leaves inadequate time to procure equipment, install cameras and commission the systems required to track fuel use in industrial units.The commission had said its flying squads had reported the use of unapproved fuels during multiple inspections across NCR. Citing the persistent use of such fuels, CAQM said real-time monitoring of industrial fuel consumption was necessary. The latest requirements are in addition to camera installations prescribed under earlier CPCB directions. These cover monitoring of online continuous emission monitoring system (OCEMS) sampling ports and flue-gas emissions from stacks at textile and food-processing units with boilers, as well as fume-extraction areas and furnace-feeding points in metal units.GCCI president Jain said, “Implementation would require industries to assess camera locations and fields of view, procure suitable equipment, arrange cabling and connectivity, upgrade electrical and networking infrastructure where necessary and deploy technical teams for installation, configuration, testing and commissioning.”The chamber also flagged the (in)availability of cameras “meeting the required specifications, vendors and installation teams”, besides budgeting and release of funds. It said attempting to complete the work within the stipulated period could create procurement bottlenecks and compromise proper commissioning.
