CUTTACK: The National Green Tribunal (NGT)’s East Zone bench in Kolkata has issued notice to multiple authorities following a petition challenging the establishment and operation of a micro-composting centre (MCC) at B1-Bharatpur, GA Colony within the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) area.
The petition filed by Bhubaneswar-based Jana Kalyan Samiti alleged serious violations of environmental norms and public health risks. The petition has been filed under Section 18(1) read with Sections 14(1), 15 and 20 of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010, questioning the legality of setting up the MCC in a densely populated residential area.
According to the petition, the plant has been established adjoining residential houses without any buffer zone, causing persistent nuisance and health hazards. It alleged that senior citizens, women and children are the worst affected due to foul odour, waste handling and continuous operations of the facility. A bench comprising Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi (Judicial Member) and Ishwar Singh (Expert Member) issued the notices after hearing submissions from petitioner counsels Sankar Prasad Pani and Ashutosh Padhy on December 17. “The averments raise substantial questions relating to environment arising from the implementation of laws listed under Schedule-I of the NGT Act,” the bench observed.
The notices were issued to the BMC commissioner, secretaries of Housing and Urban Development, Forest and Environment, Revenue and Disaster Management departments, Khurda collector, commissioner of police Bhubaneswar and the member secretaries of the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). All respondents have been asked to file their replies within one month. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on February 25.
The petition alleged that the MCC with a processing capacity exceeding 10 metric tonne per day is operating without mandatory consent to establish and operate from the OSPCB. Such facilities cannot be located within 200 metres of human habitation, ponds, public parks or water supply sources, the petitioner contends citing the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.