Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal
Construction on forest land in Odisha
Nearly 11.97 hectares of forest land in Odisha’s Jakhpura, Jajpur district has been encroached, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) was informed through an application on October 9, 2019.
No approval was sought under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, the application stated.
The consent to operate was also not obtained under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 and the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and no environmental clearance obtained under the Environmental Impact Assessment, Notification, 2006.
The application also alleged extraction of ground water without the approval of the Central Ground Water Board.
The tribunal directed the district collector and divisional forest officer of Jajpur and the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) to jointly inspect the area and submit a report.
The OSPCB has been made the nodal agency for coordinating and for providing logistic support. If the allegations are found to be correct, appropriate action must be initiated in accordance with law and an action taken report filed, the court noted.
Mining in Son Gharial Sanctuary
The NGT on October 10 directed Madhya Pradesh’s principal secretary of Forest and Environment and secretary of mining to file personal affidavits within one week stating the action taken for prohibiting mining in Son Gharial Sanctuary.
Hot mix plant in Gautam Budh Nagar
An illegally operating concrete mixer plant in Sector-74 of Noida, Uttar Pradesh, has been dismantled to a substantial extent, the NGT was informed in a report.
The tribunal had sought an action taken report from the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) and the district magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar.
However, one of the applicants apprised the tribunal that the encroachment has not been fully removed and produced photographs in support of the statement.
The NGT on October 9 directed the UPPCB to take the requisite action to help restore the damage to the environment including recovery of “realistic cost of restoration”.
Hillal Bone Mill
The NGT on October 9 directed the UPPCB to submit the compliance and action taken report on the pollution caused by Hillal Bone Mill at Babeina village in Sambhal district, Uttar Pradesh.
In its order on April 30, the UPPCB was directed to test the efficacy of bio-filters to check the odour and furnish a further report.
The report also stated that the bio-filters was not up to the mark for reduction of odour concentration and thus its working efficiency was coming to only 58.25 per cent.
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