Court Upholds Environmental Compliance in Raigarh Industries

Background

In a significant ruling, the court addressed a complaint filed by Bajrang Agarwal, the Adhyaksh of Raigarh Paryavaran Mitra, regarding the environmental practices of various coal-based industries in Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. The complaint highlighted the lack of green belts and improper disposal of fly ash, which allegedly affected the health of residents within a 20 km radius.

Arguments

The complainant argued that the industries were violating environmental clearance conditions by failing to develop 33% of their land as green belts and improperly disposing of approximately 1.52 crore tons of fly ash annually. In contrast, the industries contended that they were compliant with the Fly Ash Notification and had taken measures to utilize fly ash in construction and brick manufacturing.

Court's Analysis and Reasoning

The court established a Joint Committee to investigate the allegations. The committee's report indicated that while some industries were compliant with environmental regulations, others, such as M/s Nalwa Steel and M/s Mahaveer Energy , had not adhered to the Fly Ash Notification. The committee found that the complainant had not provided substantial evidence of illegal dumping, and many industries had developed green belts as required.

Decision

The court concluded that no significant violations of environmental laws were found. However, it directed the Chhattisgarh Environmental Control Board (CECB) to ensure compliance with the committee's recommendations, which included better monitoring of fly ash disposal and green belt development. The court emphasized the need for ongoing environmental restoration efforts funded by the environmental compensation collected from industries.