Shillong: Respiratory illness cases in Byrnihat jumped by nearly 77 percent over the last two years. Medical records show a sharp rise from 2,082 cases in 2022 to 3,681 this year. The Green-Tech Foundation blames this spike on runaway industrial pollution near the Meghalaya-Assam border.
Data from IQAir and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air paints a grim picture. Byrnihat records an average PM2.5 concentration of 128.2 micrograms per cubic metre. This level of toxic air poses a massive threat to local health. The Foundation argues that regulators cannot wait for formal complaints before acting.
The group states: "Environmental protection, the group argued, is a proactive legal duty." They contend that regulators must investigate scientific data and take action regardless of public grievance filings. Individual compliance certificates mean little when dozens of factories dump waste into the same air. The group wants an assessment of total cumulative emissions rather than isolated factory inspections.
The Foundation is now pressuring authorities in Meghalaya and Assam to step up. They want full disclosure of air quality data and strict enforcement of the Air Act of 1981. Government agencies must act now. They need to identify specific pollution sources and enforce standards to restore the area, they argue.
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