New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) The National Green Tribunal has imposed a cost of Rs 10 lakh on a biomedical waste treatment plant in Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad district for concealment of facts relating to environmental clearance (EC).

A bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel also constituted a committee comprising officials of Central Pollution Control Board, state pollution control board, State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority and District Magistrate of Moradabad.

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The tribunal noted that the counsel for the respondents were unable to explain as to why copy of the application for environmental clearance has not been produced though the said documents are easily available with State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA), UP as well as the project proponent.

The green panel said that SEIAA, UP did give show cause notice on the ground that the facts were not disclosed at the time of seeking EC but later SEIAA has taken somersault.

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The project proponent has also withheld the relevant record for no valid reason, it said.

Thus, adverse inference has to be drawn on the issue and it has to be held that the project proponent did conceal this relevant information while seeking EC and the revised stand of the SEIAA, UP is also unacceptable for the same reason, the tribunal said.

"We also find that the additional conditions are not enough for the protection of environment," the bench said.

“Accordingly, we hold that there was concealment of material facts as found above by the project proponent for which we hold the project proponent liable to pay costs assessed at Rs 10 lakh to be deposited with the State PCB within one month,” the bench said in its August 11 order.

Strict compliance of such conditions may be ensured by the State PCB by maintaining constant vigilance in the matter, the NGT said.

The joint Committee may give its report within two months to the Chairman CPCB for such further action as may be found necessary, in accordance with law, it said.

The tribunal was hearing a plea filed by UP resident Rakesh Kumar and others alleging that Environmental Clearance (EC) granted to Sushila Bio Medical Waste Plant at Gata No. 295 at Fatehpur Vishnoi village in Moradabad is contrary to the siting guidelines.

The unit is close to the habitation and a school, the plea said adding that the SEIAA made recommendations without Environment Impact Assessment.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)