Mumbai: Giving a last chance, Bombay High Court (HC) on Friday directed the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to pass the final order on regularisation application of the Lavasa Corporation, with regard to constructions at township project near Pune, in three weeks.
"The union ministry has been given time for long to pass order and today again it has sought three weeks' time.
Considering the gravity and public interest involved in the matter, we make it clear that the three weeks' time granted on Friday is the last chance," the division bench of Justices DD Sinha and VK Tahilramani said.
Additional Solicitor General Darius Khambata, on September 5, had told the HC that MoEF would pass its final order within three weeks. But no order has been passed yet.
"The ministry could not pass the order as Lavasa, on September 13, sent us a letter with further submissions on the regularisation. The ministry is considering the submissions before passing final order, and hence wants three weeks more," Khambata said.
Senior counsel Shekhar Naphade, appearing for Lavasa, argued that the ministry had been always seeking time, without passing the order.
"Why are you (MoEF) taking so much time? This is the last chance the court will be giving. If ministry fails to pass an order within three weeks, then the court shall hear and decide Lavasa's petition on deemed clearance based on merits," Justice Sinha said, posting the matter for hearing on October
18.
Naphade had earlier argued that as per a circular issued by MoEF in another matter, if the ministry did not pass final order within 45 days of the experts' committee giving a clearance, then the committee's report would be deemed to be the final decision.
"It has been 45 days since the experts' appraisal committee submitted its report giving Lavasa clearance, and the ministry has not yet passed its final order. Hence the committee's report should be considered a final order," he had contended.
Khambata, however, opposed this, saying that committee has not given unconditional clearance to Lavasa. "The committee has given its recommendations along with 34 conditions, out of which five are pre-conditions which Lavasa has to comply with first," he said.
The pre-conditions set by the committee, among other things, require that Maharashtra government initiates credible action against Lavasa for violations under Environment (Protection) Act. They also require a formal resolution from the Board of Directors of Lavasa Corporation that violations under the Act would not be repeated and the scale of development shall be as per Hill Station Regulations; there would be a clear demarcation of 'no development/ construction zone.
Lavasa, in its letter dated September 13 to the MoEF, claimed that the pre-conditions imposed on it were discriminatory. "In respect of four other similarly situated projects, the MoEF has not imposed the pre-conditions and has regularised them," the letter states.
Lavasa Corporation, a subsidiary of Hindustan Construction Company (HCC), had initially challenged the November 25 notice issued by MoEF, staying construction, for not obtaining environmental clearances.
Later, experts' committee was set up by MoEF to inspect the project.
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