Action on JPL good news for MoEF
The decision of the Chattisgarh Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to take legal action against Jindal Power Ltd (JPL) is the culmination of a long battle which local environmentalists have been waging against this gargantuan company. JPL had requested ministry of environment & forests (MoEF) for permission to set up a 4x600 mw coal-based power plant in Tanmar in Raigarh district of Chattisgarh in March 2009.
The request was forwarded to the environment secretary of Chattisgarh for processing but before approvals could be given, JPL had started constructing its new plant at the same site where its current 1000 mw unit is operating. When an inspection team comprising members of the Chattisgarh Environment Conservation Board, CPCB and MoEF arrived at the site, they ordered work on the site to be stopped under Section 19 of the Environment Protection Act 1986 on grounds of non-submission of an environmental impact assessment.
MoEF has had several skirmishes in the past with the Navin Jindal group of companies. In December, 2006, the wildlife warden-cum-district forest officer of Raigarh had issued three show-cause notices to Jindal for offences under the wildlife and forest protection laws.
One alleged offence dealt with the company having mined 177 hectares of forest land within an elephant migration corridor for construction of a dam over the Rabo River without, however, offering any remediation measures.
The Chattisgarh Pollution Control Committee had way back in 2005, also reportedly filed charges against JSPL for extracting more than the licensed amount of coal from its coal mines.
But the biggest grouse of the local tribal population is that even though in 1996, the District Water Utilisation Council had denied JSPL permission to draw water from the River Kelu for industrial purposes, the company managed to secure permission from a state-level committee to construct a check dam across the river and sink wells to draw more than 35000 cubic meters of water daily thereby depriving thousand of villagers of water.
Post new comment