CHENNAI: In a setback to the Tamil Nadu government, the three-member independent committee appointed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) to probe closure of Sterlite copper smelter unit at Thoothukudi, has called the government orders ‘unsustainable’ and ‘unjust’ and favoured reopening of the plant.
The panel submitted the report to the NGT on November 20. The report came up before the tribunal on Wednesday. The NGT bench, headed by its Chairman Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, read out the operative part of the report during the hearing, according to which the committee said: “The impugned orders of the State government cannot be sustained as it is against the principles of natural justice. No notice or opportunity of hearing was given to the appellant. The grounds mentioned in the impugned orders are not that grievous to justify permanent closure of the factory. Other issues raised also do not justify the closure of the factory even if the appellant was found to be violating the conditions/norms/directions.” The committee has listed 25 conditions to be imposed upon Sterlite by the NGT, if it opines the Sterlite unit should recommence production.
While, Sterlite Copper CEO P Ramnath accepted the report and said the company’s stand had been vindicated, the TN government questioned the panel’s locus standi and termed the report ‘lopsided’. Shambu Kallolikar, Chairman, Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and principal secretary, environment, said the panel had overstepped its scope of inquiry and had no authority to pass judgemental views.
"NGT had asked the committee to go into the material produced by the parties on the issue of environmental compliance as well as impact on inhabitants, but instead the committee seems to have taken it upon itself to decide the case," Kallolikar, the TNPCB Chairman, said.
In fact, Sterlite's petition challenging government orders before the NGT is not maintainable, he said. "The GO directing permanent closure by the State government cannot be challenged in the NGT. It is a policy decision which we have taken and the pollution board has absolute authority to close down an industry which is found polluting and violating the norms under Air and Water Acts.
Government decisions can be challenged only in the High Court or Supreme Court," he said, adding that the maintainability issue would be reiterated by State counsel on December 7, when the case will be coming up for final hearing. "We will knock on the doors of the Supreme Court again, if need be," he said. One of the intervenors Fatima Babu said: "It was ironical that the committee did not make any finding on pollution, hazardous waste mismanagement and greenbelt and other legal violations by Sterlite."
The NGT will hear arguments on the committee's report on December 7 and pronounce its orders. However, the Supreme Court has also directed NGT to rule on the issues of maintainability raised by TNPCB and Tamil Nadu government.
Sterlite smells victory
"We, as a company, have always been environmentally conscious in every aspect of our operations and have followed all the regulations laid down by law. The NGT committee has followed due process to independently investigate and hear both sides of the argument. They have submitted their report to the NGT and the operative paragraphs of the report were read out in the open court which mentioned that the orders passed by the TN government are against the principles of natural justice,” said Ramnath in a statement.
Key recommendations
1. Sterlite should be directed to monitor groundwater quality, including heavy metals such as Arsenic, Cadmium, Silver, Copper, Fluoride, etc. in and around the factory premises and nearby villages once a month and such reports should be furnished to TNPCB
2. Sampling of effluent/emission and solid waste should also be done by a monitoring group to be constituted by TNPCB
3. Copper slag dumped at all the 11 sites, including the Uppar River should be removed
4. The dead stock of copper slag and gypsum lying in the dump yard inside the factory premises which has solidified should be removed in a time-bound manner
5. The Tamil Nadu government/ TNPCB should collect data from their primary health centres and government hospitals to monitor the various ailments that are being complained of by people living in and around the factory premises
6. Irrespective of the norms, stack height in any case be increased in order to remove the ambiguity and the grievance of inhabitants of Thoothukudi with regard to emission of Sulpur Dioxide. Till the stack height is increased, production of copper as well as sulphuric acid should be reduced