Pollution control board to reclassify meat shops under red category

Panaji: Following objections raised by animal welfare NGOs, Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), at its recent meeting, decided to recategorise chicken and mutton shops in the state as red category industries.

The organisations had objected to the GSPCB’s earlier decision to classify these shops as ‘green category’ industries.The board had subsequently kept its earlier decision in suspension.Objecting to the re-categorisation of chicken and mutton shops as ‘green category’ industries, advocate Atish Mandrekar told the GSPCB that the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) classifies slaughterhouses as ‘red category’ industries.He said the GSPCB had based its decision on an exercise carried out by the Kerala Pollution Control Board. However, the GSPCB’s decision was not in line with the Kerala board’s categorisation of such establishments, Mandrekar pointed out.Rajendra Shah from the Animal Welfare Board and Gauri Maulekhi from People for Animals were among others who had also objected to the re-categorisation.Mandrekar said that permitting slaughtering activities without adequate pollution control measures could cause serious environmental and health hazards in the area.

He had therefore urged the GSPCB to quash its decision.Accordingly, the GSPCB revisited and reversed its earlier order.“Consequent to the deliberations and decisions at the meeting regarding re-categorisation of chicken/mutton shops/centres in the state of Goa as green category, all such units are now categorised as red category, and the board is in the process of issuing necessary directions to 19 units registered with it for re-categorisation as red category,” the Board noted at its meeting held earlier this month.