Panaji, Aug 31 - The central government would crack the whip on the Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) for causing large scale dust pollution in the port town of Vasco in south Goa, Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh has said.

Ramesh, who was in Goa to attend a public consultative session on the Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ), told reporters Sunday that he was appalled by the huge open dumps near the berthing jetties at MPT, a central government-run enterprise.

'I was unhappy to see such mountains of coal dumped in the open. I have called and informed the union minister for shipping (G.K.) Vasan in presence of your chief minister (Digambar Kamat),' Ramesh said.