New Delhi, Jan 17 (PTI) The National Green Tribunal haslifted its stay on the construction of a waste treatment plantin the catchment area of the Basai wetland at Gurgaon inHaryana.
A bench headed by acting Chairperson Justice U D Salvipassed the order after perusing the revenue records and notingthat the land in question has not been identified as a wetlandby the Haryana government.
The order came after the project proponent assured thebench that it would not to carry out construction on the sitewithout obtaining the consent from the Haryana StatePollution Control Board.
The project proponent gave an undertaking that it wouldnot set up any machinery or equipment to run the constructionwithout an authorisation from the state pollution board.
"The record reveals that the land in question has notbeen identified as a wetland by the State of Haryana. In viewof this fact and the undertaking given by the ProjectProponent we vacate the injunction order dated July 27,2017," the bench, also comprising expert member Nagin Nanda,said. The matter will now be heard on February 28.
The tribunal in July last year had ordered status quoafter noting its adverse impact on the water body.
The green panel had earlier said the applicant has madeout a prima facie case for directing preservation of land inquestion till further order of this tribunal in this regard.
The tribunal was earlier informed that the boundary wallof the plant, being developed by IL and FS EnvironmentalInfrastructure and Services Ltd, was adjacent to the areaknown for rich biodiversity of bird species.
The tribunal was hearing a plea filed by NGO Delhi BirdFoundation seeking a stay on the project contending that theBasai wetland, though not declared as a wetland under the 2010Wetland (Conservation & Management) Rules, was a valuablewater body.
"The construction and debris plant which is under processof establishment shall have an adverse impact on the waterbody due to various activities connected with the plant," theplea had said.
The plant, according to the Gurgaon municipalcorporation, will be spread over 3.5 acres of land and process500 tonnes of waste a day.
The NGT had earlier issued notices to the the environmentministry, the Haryana government, the municipal corporationand the IL&FS Environmental Infrastructure and Services Ltdafter the NGO alleged that the Basai wetland was in a criticalcondition due to the project. PTI PKSARC.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.