Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad   

Tanneries raise a stink

By J.S. Ifthekhar

HYDERABAD, JULY 23. Though slaughterhouses have been shifted to the city outskirts a year ago, there is no respite for residents of Gulshan Nagar and surrounding bastis in Musheerabad.

They continue to suffer from pollution caused by raw skin and hide units in the area.

Last year, the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH) withdrew trade licences to tanneries for causing pollution following a directive from the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB). This year too eSeva centres have been asked not to renew the licences.

While the number of raw skin units has come down after MCH crackdown, quite a few tanneries continue to flourish, plying their trade surreptitiously. In the past, one could see heaps of animal skins and bones lining up the narrow lanes of Gulshan Nagar, Sainagar and Bakaram. But now, business is done on the sly. Skins can be seen stacked in houses. However, the offensive odour cannot be suppressed. It is simply overpowering. Residents of these densely populated localities have been suffering from a variety of respiratory infections. The problem is not on the same scale as in the past but still the pollution threat persists.

MCH says it's not aware

Surprisingly, the MCH is unaware of the secret functioning of the tanneries. "We have not renewed any licence and if any tannery is functioning it is indulging in illegal activity. We will inspect and serve closure notices," says G. Malsur, Additional Commissioner, Health & Sanitation, MCH.

Water contamination

The APPCB has traced the main source of water contamination in the area to the tanning units. The trading units of skin and hides also add to the stench. Besides, there are quite a few bone-storing units at Kalyani Karkhana in Gulshan Nagar, which collect bones from the slaughterhouses, dry and dispose them off. For long there has been a demand for relocation of these units on the city outskirts. "No place is provided for the tanning units in the modern abattoir at Chenigcherala. But when slaughterhouses have been shifted from the city, the tanneries should also shift," Mr. Malsur says.

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