KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Monday directed the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute(NEERI) to issue notice to the Nitta Gelatin India Action Council before conducting further inspection in the factory of the Nitta Gelatin India Limited at Koratty in Thrissur district.
The court has also ordered that the Lawyers Environment Awareness Forum(LEAF), a wing of the Kerala High Court Advocates Association, should also be given an opportunity to take part in further inspection by NEERI.
Justice A Mohammed Mustaq passed the order on a petition filed by Jaison Panikulangara of NGIL Action Council and others challenging the extension of the factory’s licence by the State Pollution Control Board. The licence granted to the company which expired on June 30, 2015 had been extended indefinitely by the chairman, overruling the decision of the board. The petitioner contended that the Chairman had no power to take a decision to renew the licence.
NEERI which conducted inspection as directed by the High Court had put forward 24 recommendations. The directive to NEERI was to conduct a detailed study into the pollution status with respect to the air, water and aolid waste generated from the petitioner’s factory and the quality of the pollution control measures installed by the company.
The State Pollution Control Board submitted that the company complemented 10 recommendations out of 24. The management is granted time till December 2015 to comply with the other recommendations. It was under these circumstances that the licence was extended.