Yodh BDR Thapa vs Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd.

Headnote Court Copy Facts Arguments Court observation Judicial Analysis Case Map Category Hierarchy Table of Content

2024 Supreme(Online)(NGT) 2941

NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL KOLKATA (EASTERN ZONE BENCH)
B. Amit Sthalekar, Judicial Member, Arun Kumar Verma, Expert Member
Yodh BDR Thapa – Appellant
Versus
Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. – Respondent
Execution Application No.02/2024/EZ | Original Application No.154/2022/EZ

Important Points

Petrol depots require 250-300m buffer from habitation per national SOP, distinguishing from retail outlets; Tribunal mandates SOP development and enforcement for hazardous storage safety.

Subject

Environmental Law - Hazardous Substances & Pollution Control

Act Referred

Manufacture Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989: Sch.I
Petroleum Rules, 2002: R.105
Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991

Headnote

(A) Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 - Manufacture Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989 - Petroleum Rules, 2002 - Siting criteria for petrol depots - Distinction from retail outlets - CPCB guidelines of 07.01.2020 for retail outlets (50m buffer from residential areas etc.) inapplicable to depots storing hazardous petrol (1065 KL capacity) - Tribunal directed CPCB to prepare SOP for depots (Para 22, order 17.04.2023); construction restrained till SOP in place - CPCB SOP amended to mandate 250-300m buffer zone from human habitation (residential, educational, healthcare etc.) per MB Lal Committee recommendations accepted by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas - State PCB revised SOP accordingly, prohibiting depots in residential/urban areas near settlements, requiring 250-300m buffer, 100m from water bodies, green belt, baseline monitoring, QRA, disaster management (Paras 8-19). (Paras 5, 15-19)

(B) Execution proceedings - Compliance with Tribunal order - No construction undertaken post-restraining order - SOPs finalized and revised incorporating stringent buffer zones - State authorities directed to strictly enforce revised SOP - Application disposed of as nothing survives for adjudication. (Paras 6-22)

Facts of the case:
Applicant challenged setting up of petrol depot adjacent to residential plot (15ft from boundary, 24ft from office, 64ft from dispensing unit) in mountainous urban area, alleging violation of retail outlet siting criteria. Tribunal distinguished depot from retail outlet, noted risks in populated hill area, directed SOP for depots and restrained construction. Execution application filed for compliance; respondents filed SOPs confirming no construction and detailing revised criteria.

Findings of Court:
Petrol depots require 250-300m buffer from habitation per national recommendations; revised State SOP compliant; status quo maintained; enforce SOP strictly.

Issues: Applicability of retail outlet guidelines to depots; necessity and content of SOP for depots; compliance with restraining order; adequacy of buffer zones addressing habitation risks.

Ratio Decidendi: Siting criteria for hazardous petrol depots must incorporate 250-300m buffer from human habitation as per expert committee recommendations, superseding retail outlet norms; SOPs mandatory for safe establishment in sensitive areas; construction halt till norms finalized and site compliant.

Result: Execution Application disposed of; direction to State Respondents to strictly enforce revised SOP.

Advocates:
For the Applicant(s): Akshar Bhatt, Sajal Sharma
For the Respondent(s): Aasia Hasan, Vikram Wadehra, Sameer Abhyankar, Aakash Thakur, Surendra Kumar, Raj Kumar, Ashok Prasad, Apurba Ghosh

Table of Content
1. alleged violation of petrol depot siting criteria. (Para 2 , 3 , 4 , 6)
2. prior order directed sop preparation and restrained construction. (Para 5)
3. compliance reports confirm no construction and initial sops. (Para 7 , 8 , 9 , 13 , 14)
4. cpcb sop amended to require 250-300m buffer zones. (Para 10 , 11 , 12 , 15 , 16)
5. sikkim revised sop adopts 250-300m buffer requirements. (Para 17 , 18 , 19)
6. enforce revised sop with mandatory buffer zones. (Para 20 , 21 , 22)

ORDER

1. Heard the learned Counsel for the parties.

2. The Original Application No.154/2022/EZ (Yodh BDR Thapa Vs.Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited & Ors.) was filed by the Applicant therein alleging that the Respondent No.1, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), is setting-up a Petrol Depot on Plot No. 2242 which is adjacent to the plot of the Applicant being Plot No. 2254 and Plot No. 2242 is under the proprietorship of one Mr. Arjun Chhetri, proprietor of M/s Pankaj Fuel, which is stated to have been leased out to the Respondent No.1.

3. The allegation of the Applicant is that the said Petrol Depot is being set-up in violation of the Siting Criteria laid down by the Central Pollution Control Board in its Circular dated 07.01.2020, copy of which has been filed as Annexure A-16 to the Original Application.

4. The case of the Applicant further was that as per the Siting Criteria laid down by the Central Pollution Control Board in its Notification dated 07.01.2020, petrol pumps/new retail outlets shall not be located within a radial distance of 50 meters from the filling point/dispensing units/vent pipe whichever is nearest) from schools, hospitals and residential areas. Paragraph ‘H’ of the Siting Criteria of the said Notification reads as under: -

“H. Siting Criteria for Retail Outlets:

In case of siting criteria for petrol pumps new Retail outlets shall not be located within a radial distance of 50 meters (from fill point/dispensing units/vent pipe whichever is nearest) from schools, hospitals (10 beds and above) and residential areas designated as per local laws. In case of constraints in providing 50 meters distance, the retail outlet shall implement additional safety measures as prescribed by PESO. In no case the distance between new retail outlet from schools, hospitals (10 beds and above) and residential area designated as per local laws shall be less than 30 meters. No high tension line shall pass over the retail outlet.”

5. The Original Application was disposed of by this Tribunal vide order dated 17.04.2023. The findings of the Tribunal and the directions given therein read as under :-

“17. There is no dispute between the parties that what is being setup by the Respondent No.1 is not a petrol retail outlet but a petrol depot having a capacity of 1065 KL equivalent to 10,65,000 liters of petrol. It cannot be gainsaid that petrol is a hazardous substance within the meaning of the term as defined in Part I of Schedule 1of the Rules, 1989. Here we are not concerned with a case of setting up of a petrol pump/retail outlet and therefore, the CPCB guidelines of 07.01.2020 have no application in the present case.

18. Be that as it may, the Spot Verification Report of the SDM, Rangpo clearly states that the Petrol Depot site in question is situate 15 ft. from the boundary wall of the Applicant, 24 ft. away from its office and 64 ft. away from its dispensing Unit. In this view of the matter, even if assuming that the CPCB guidelines of 07.01.2020 were applicable, the siting of the retail depot in question is in violation of the siting criteria given therein.

19. Having said that, we find there is no Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) with regard to establishment of Petrol Depots as distinguished from petrol pumps/retail outlets. It appears that the District Administration while issuing the NOC has not taken into consideration the fact that the Depot is situated in a mountainous urban area where the residential establishments are situated not only