The proposal to set up a large-scale cement plant near Talwandi Aklia village in Mansa district, Punjab, has stirred deep anxiety among residents, environmentalists, and public health advocates. At the heart of this concern is the nature of the cement plant itself—it is categorised as a “red category” industry, which is a classification reserved for the most polluting industrial units under India’s environmental norms. Such a designation indicates a high potential for environmental and health damage due to chemical emissions and waste byproducts.
Local villagers recently voiced their opposition during a public hearing organized by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB). They cited fears that the cement plant would lead to the release of harmful chemicals and particulate matter into the air and surrounding environment, which could worsen existing health conditions and introduce new threats, especially among children, the elderly, and agricultural workers. The plant, proposed by JSW Cement, is planned to have a production capacity of six million tonnes per annum, a scale that implies significant emissions of dust, gases, and possibly toxic compounds.
Cement manufacturing is known globally to emit various pollutants, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), nitrogen oxides (NOₓ), sulfur dioxide (SO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), and heavy metals like mercury, cadmium, and lead. These pollutants primarily enter the atmosphere during the combustion of fuels and the heating of limestone in kilns. The fine dust and gaseous emissions from cement plants can travel long distances and lodge deep into human lungs, leading to asthma, chronic bronchitis, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), and increased risk of heart attacks and strokes.
Scientific studies in other regions with similar industrial activity have also documented higher incidences of certain cancers, including those affecting the respiratory tract. Some research indicates that communities living near cement plants are exposed to increased levels of heavy metals in blood and hair samples, which are linked to kidney damage, neurological disorders, and developmental delays in children. The risk is magnified in areas like Mansa where the existing groundwater has already been reported to contain dangerously high levels of uranium, arsenic, and nitrates.
A recent study published in an environmental health journal found that 71% of groundwater samples in Mansa had uranium levels exceeding the World Health Organization’s limits, while arsenic contamination posed long-term cancer risks, particularly to children. The region’s water also suffers from nitrate and fluoride pollution, which has been linked to conditions like blue baby syndrome and fluorosis. The fear among locals is that an additional polluting industry will not only degrade the air but also further contaminate already compromised water resources, making life unbearable in rural pockets already suffering from poor health outcomes.
From a global standpoint, health assessments near cement factories—such as those in Italy, Brazil, and North Africa—have demonstrated a correlation between plant emissions and increased hospital admissions, reduced life expectancy, and elevated years of life lost (YLL) to chronic diseases. In one Brazilian study, it was found that PM2.5 from a cement plant accounted for nearly 4–5% of all regional life years lost due to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, alongside an annual economic health burden of over $1.4 million.
The situation in Mansa is particularly sensitive because many residents rely on farming, and any air or water pollution directly affects soil quality and crop health. Cement dust, when deposited on crops, reduces photosynthesis and yield, adding an economic dimension to the public health crisis. Additionally, the region’s existing problems with depleting and contaminated groundwater leave residents without alternative safe water sources, meaning chemical exposure would not just be airborne but potentially present in drinking and irrigation supplies as well.
Given the above risks, community leaders and environmental activists are demanding a comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), full public disclosure of the plant’s emissions and chemical usage, and a halt to all construction until proper health and environmental safeguards are guaranteed. They are also advocating for independent air and water monitoring, long-term epidemiological studies, and inclusion of villagers in all stages of decision-making. Without these, they argue, the people of Mansa may become victims of yet another industrial disaster in a state already grappling with rising cancer rates and environmental degradation.
The proposed cement plant in Mansa, while a symbol of industrial growth on paper, may in reality pose a grave risk to public health unless stringent regulations, transparent oversight, and scientific scrutiny are enforced. In a region already strained by poor environmental conditions, adding a large polluting unit without adequate safeguards could prove catastrophic for generations to come.