Sahara Mall, a commercial hub of the city located on the Mehrauli-Gurugram (MG) road, was sealed by the Haryana State Pollution Control Board (HSPCB) for flouting anti-pollution norms.

According to HSPCB the mall was served first show cause notice regarding the same in 2018 and fined Rs 2.5 lakh but even after almost two years they have failed to rectify operations and have been polluting the environment by toxic sewage discharge.

A team from the HSPCB along with duty magistrate Kartar Singh and pollution environment engineers Neha Saharan and Ujjwal Kumar reached the mall at around 7.30 a.m. and sealed the entire complex.

The mall authorities will not only be fined but will be paying environmental damage compensation and a case is also being filed.

"The mall authority was not treating the STP water properly which is a clear violation of the environmental norms. We had also served a notice to the mall authority in February but they haven't taken any action so far," said Kuldeep Singh, Officer, Haryana State Pollution Control Board, Gurugram.

The board had sealed the STP then and it was yet to get approval for resumption of operations but the mall authorities were running it without informing the board.

"The mall management without treating the sewage water used to dump it outside which is gross negligence on the part of the mall authorities. This action was initiated," Singh said.

Apart from this, the Sahara Mall Condominium Units Owners Association, have written a letter to the mall management and urge them to take necessary action to open the mall soon.

“The mall authorities are collecting a huge amount from us under the grab of providing maintenance in the mall. Whereas, they have failed to protect the interest of Shop Owners and Occupants of Sahara Mall due to the mall management's negligence,” said Ranjit Singh, member of Sahara Mall Condominium Units Owners Association.

"We all were already having great difficulties since our stores were closed from March 19 to June 30, 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic. The mall has been sealed due to the mall management faults. Now this sealing will surely affect our business,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Board is now planning to file a suit against the mall management in the environmental court.

"The mall management is not taking our notice seriously and continuously disobeying HSPCB warning. We will soon file a suit against the authority and impose hefty penalty as per the norms," Singh said.

"We will allow the mall to operate only when they fulfill all the norms and obtain required permissions from the court," he added.

Despite several attempts the mall authorities could not be contacted for comments.