Daily Court Digest: Major environment orders (July 15, 2022)

Submit detailed report on bio-medical waste management: NGT to Madhya Pradesh PCB

A joint committee report constituted on the orders of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) found a huge gap among the quantity of generation, collection and waste disposal. These include variations in the figures uploaded on the website by the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board (MPPCB).

Also, the existing facilities were working below capacity (on average about 30 per cent of capacity), the report said.

The Madhya Pradesh State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) informed NGT July 12, 2022 that there was a significant gap between the number of beds registered with MPPCB and Common Biomedical Waste Treatment Facility. Thus, a fresh gap analysis is needed to be conducted by MPPCB so that further required action can be initiated and taken by SEIAA.

The NGT (central zone bench, Bhopal) directed MPPCB to file a detailed report before July 25, 2022.

Workers cleaning drains without protective gear in Prayagraj: Allahabad HC summons District Magistrate and Nagar Ayukt

The bench of judges Rajesh Bindal and JJ Munir of the Allahabad High Court directed district magistrate and Nagar Ayukt of Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh to appear before the court on July 25, 2022 on the matter of sanitation workers cleaning drains in Prayagraj without wearing protective gears.

A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed before the HC taking note of a news item published May 24, 2022 on the issue.

The Allahabad High Court noted that the photographs placed on record makes it clear that: 

No protective gears have been provided to the workers and they were still waist deep under the water for cleaning of drains. Some of the drains are in open areas but still no machines were being used for cleaning of the drains, though it is claimed that Nagar Nigam has number of machines available, which are being used for cleaning of drains.

Discharge of untreated water into water bodies of Panna must be dealt with strictly: NGT

The NGT directed the collector of Panna and the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board to ensure there is no discharge of untreated water or illegal encroachment in the water bodies or on public land.

The bench of Justice Sheo Kumar Singh gave two more weeks for the state to file the action taken report and submit further compliance on the matter.

The NGT order was in response to a case filed by Sarvam Ritam Khare July 31, 2021 regarding untreated water from the city of Panna being directly discharged into the rivers through nallahs.

Kerala files report on plastic waste management

Additional Chief Secretary of the local self government department of Kerala filed a report in NGT on the steps taken by the state to manage plastic waste.

The report mentioned that sanction has been accorded for setting up of an integrated plastic waste management facility at Kunnamthanam, Pathanamthitta for Rs 4.56 crore under the Rebuild Kerala Initiative Scheme. 

Suchitwa Mission has invited Resource Recovery Facility for plastic waste management for urban local bodies (ULB) in Kerala.

“The empanelled agencies shall work with ULBs in Kerala with an objective of ensuring 100 per cent processing of non-recyclable plastics that have been segregated and collected by the ULB,” the report to NGT noted July 14, 2022.

Suchitwa Mission is Kerala’s solid waste management project with financial assistance from the World Bank. The project aims to strengthen the institutional and service delivery systems for waste management services at a regional scale and in select urban areas in Kerala.

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