JUDGMENT :

N. NAGARESH, J.

1. The petitioner is a registered partnership firm which intends to start a retail fuel outlet in 30.5 Cents of land in Kodakara Village of Chalakudy Taluk.

2. The petitioner states that the land is dry land and all Revenue records described the land as dry land. When the petitioner submitted application to the Kerala State Pollution Control Board seeking Consent to Establish under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, the application was rejected on the ground that the siting criteria prescribed for petrol pump units, was not satisfied with.

3. The petitioner states that the Pollution Control Board Authorities have taken a stand that siting criteria prescribed is not found satisfied based on Ext.P9 Addendum to Guidelines issued by the Pollution Control Board for setting up of new petrol pumps.

4. The petitioner would submit that the said Addendum, particularly sub-clause (a) thereof will not affect the land of the petitioner because the only water body in the land which is a pond, is a manmade pond and it is not included in Revenue records. Therefore, Ext.P8 is liable to be interfered with and the Environmental Engineer is compellable to issue Consent to Establish to the petitioner.

5. The Standing Counsel entered appearance on behalf of the 1st respondent. The 1st respondent stated that as per the Addendum to Guidelines for setting up of new petrol pumps issued by the Central Pollution Control Board, a siting criteria has been described and it is based on the said guidelines that Ext.P8 has been issued.

6. The petitioner impleaded the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the authority which issued Ext.P9 Addendum to Guidelines, as additional 4th respondent. The additional 4th respondent filed a statement in the writ petition. The additional 4th respondent stated that it is understood from the writ petition that there exists a small man-made pond in the vicinity of the proposed fuel station. The CPCB has issued an Addendum to the guidelines issued as per the CPCB office memorandum No. B-13011/1/2019-20/AQM/0814 dated 07.01.2020, wherein it is mandated that new petrol pumps are not allowed within 50 metres from any surface water bodies included in the Revenue records. The addendum as per the office memorandum B-13011/1/2019-20/AQM dated 16.08.2021 is at Ext.P9. The CPCB guidelines for setting up of new petrol pumps including the addendum, are to be implemented by concerned State Government Agency/State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) and in the present case, respondent No. 1, the Kerala State Pollution Control Board.

7. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, respective learned Standing Counsel representing respondents 1 and 4 and the learned Government Pleader representing the 2nd respondent. Notice to the 3rd respondent is dispensed with in view of the nature of the relief to be granted in the writ petition.

8. The petitioner proposes to start a petroleum fuel outlet. The 3rd respondent has given franchise-ship to the petitioner to start the retail outlet. The grievance of the petitioner is that the Pollution Control Board has rejected the application for Consent to Establish. Ext.P8 order by which Consent has been rejected, has been issued on the ground that the siting criteria prescribed for petrol pump units were not found satisfied with.

9. It is evident that Ext.P8 has been issued based on Ext.P9 Addendum to Guidelines for setting up of new petrol pumps issued by the Central Pollution Control Board. Clause (a) of Ext.P9 reads as follows:

(a) All the surface water bodies irrespective of utility shall be protected from any possible contamination. These include lakes, ponds, streams, rivers, wetlands, canals and creeks, as per revenue records. Retail Outlets shall not be located within a distance of 50 metres from the nearest point of water bodies. In case of streams and rivers, the distance shall be considered from floodway. In case floodway is no defined, the distance sha