Order of the National Green Tribunal regarding damage to the environment due to stone crushers in village Tilora, Satna district, Madhya Pradesh, 01/07/2020
Order of the National Green Tribunal in the matter of Residents of Gram Panchayat Varahiya Vs State of Madhya Pradesh dated 01/07/2020 regarding dust pollution by illegal operation of stone crushers at village Tilora, Rausa, tehsil Mehar, district Satna at NH-7 (New Four lane) in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
A joint report was filed on March 11, 2020 by the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board (MPPCB) and the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) which assessed the damage to the environment.
The report took into account the damage to the air quality, health issues and the agricultural production loss and said that based on the mechanism developed by CPCB for the assessment of the damage to air quality, health and agriculture, the calculations have been made. They are:
i. Damage to air quality = Rs. 5,57,784 per day
ii.Damage to health due to respiratory diseases = Rs. 10, 34,000/-
iii. Agriculture production loss of wheat by PM10 & PM2.5 = Rs. : 1420/-
An action taken report was also filed by the MPPCB on April 27, 2020 which assessed the compensation against individual stone crushers for violation of environmental norms from February 19, 2018 to March 31, 2019.
Some of the defaulting stone crushers have made the deposit, the remaining have not yet made the deposit, the Tribunal was informed.
The NGT directed the MPPCB to take further action and make sure that the stone crushers who had not yet made the deposit should operate till the compensation amount has been paid and the environmental norms complied. The CPCB was asked by the court to circulate the compensation regime to all pollution control board/ pollution control committee to serve as a guiding factor for assessment of compensation based on different fact situations.