Assam oil well blowout: SC stays NGT appointment of panel member
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OIL MD made member of NGT panel shaped to repair fault and damages to revive Dibru Saikhowa National Park, which was broken in May 2020
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed a National Green Tribunal (NGT) verdict appointing the managing director of the corporate behind the ‘Baghjan 5’ oil well blowout as a member of its committee assigned to find out the duty and compensation for the restoration of the Dibru Saikhowa National Park in Assam, which was severely broken within the occasion in May 2020.
“We are surprised by this order of the NGT. It is the Oil India Ltd., which is responsible for the damage to the wetlands and its own managing director has been inducted into the committee?” a Bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachud and M.R. Shah famous its shock on the Tribunal’s alternative of members.
The court docket additionally famous how the NGT went forward with a second spherical of appointments of committees regardless of already having obtained complete experiences from an earlier professional committee detailing the extent of harm to the park and pinning the duty on the corporate.
“After the report of the first committee, three committees have been set up separately,” Justice Shah identified.
Notice to OIL
Issuing discover to Oil India Ltd (OIL), the court docket directed “a stay of the operation of the impugned judgment and order of the NGT dated 19 February 2021 till the next date of hearing”.
The court docket was listening to an enchantment filed by Bonani Kakkar in opposition to the NGT judgment.
Senior advocate Siddharth Mitra, for the appellant, narrated that the NGT first constituted an professional committee on June 24 final yr. This committee gave its report on the harm attributable to the blowout in July. An extra progress report was filed within the NGT in October setting out the destruction of fish species and the extreme environmental impression attributable to the occasion.
Despite this, the NGT went on to type three extra panels, one of which is chaired by the Assam Chief Secretary and wherein the managing director is a member.
“It has been submitted that this will be in breach of the principles of natural justice since the conduct of Oil India Limited is basically in issue and, hence, the managing director ought not to be a member of the committee in any case,” the court docket recorded in its order.
Mr. Mitra argued that the formation of three extra committees would solely delay the atmosphere restore course of.
Single panel
The court docket stated it might even type a single committee headed by a retired Supreme Court decide to determine all the problems.
“We are very dissatisfied with the manner the NGT has pushed the matter off its hands. It is the National Green Tribunal, it must have some alacrity and concern for the environment,” Justice Chandrachud noticed orally.
The court docket determined to checklist the case after three weeks.
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