Chandigarh, Jun 18 (IANS): The Punjab government and stakeholders on Friday announced to start initiatives to clean the Sutlej river through an action plan.

Punjab being the second largest cotton and yarn producer in the country has emerged as a key hub for textile-based industries, including yarn, readymade garments and hosiery.

With the development of apparel parks, the textile industry is developing rapidly in Ludhiana city that has now become one of the most polluted cities in the world.

The Buddha nullah, which used to be a freshwater stream till three decades ago, has become a release point for toxic effluents from several mills and industries in its proximity.

The Buddha nullah is also a tributary of the Sutlej river with most of this untreated waste ending up in the river.

Centre for Responsible Business (CRB) and The ReFashion Hub have come up with a set of policy recommendations that can promote wastewater reuse to address the issue of water contamination in the state.

This initiative is a part of a nation-wide campaign launched along with the Alliance for Water Stewardship & YWater to raise awareness on wastewater reuse in the textile industry.

Ludhiana's textile industry consists of roughly 300 processing and dyeing units, which are in proximity to rivers and groundwater sources.

Devyani Hari, Director (Programmes), CRB, said, "The pollution of the Sutlej river, especially from industrial and domestic sewage, has drawn much attention and has resulted in the formation of the Sutlej Action Plan anchored with the Punjab Pollution Control Board.

"Ludhiana is one of the key locations identified as the source of pollution. Of the 2,400 plus industrial units identified in Ludhiana, nearly 10 per cent belong to the dyeing units."

Several consultations and meetings were organised with stakeholders in Punjab by CRB with support from The Refashion Hub to gauge awareness on water reuse and wastewater treatment.