Minister of forest and environment Chandrakant Khaire, who was in the city to inaugurate the mobile monitoring van of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), on Wednesday told media persons that the board had chalked out three zones - A1 which comprises the river source, A2 comprising the dam site and A3 consisting of the backflow water. No polluting industries such as chemicals will be permitted within a one kilometre range of the river source, 3 km of the dam site and 500 metres of the backwater sources.

The state government has chalked out an ambitious river-action plan to clean up all the major rivers in the state including Sangli, Nashik, Paithan and Pandharpur which will be run bythe Maharashtra Water Supply Scheme. In Pune region this project would cost Rs six crore.

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has already allocated Rs 2.33 crore towards the river action plan. Currently 650 cases are pending in courts for the last 15 to 20 years because of which the central government had directed the MPCB to initiate action against the pollution factories.

The board had issued notices to 1284 factories in the state for water pollution of which 254 have been shut. Around 289 factories were issued notices for air pollution of which 84 units have closed down. The minister also revealed that the notification for ban of plastic bags less than 20 microns in width would shortly be issued by the Government and the ban would come into force by next month.