NGT scanner on proposed waste plant on forest land
- Cuttack: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued notices to the state and central governments on a petition seeking intervention against the establishment of a common hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facility for eight districts spread across 27 acres at Patarapada under Panjang tehsil in Dhenkanal district.
- Prakash Chandra Nayak and five other residents of the locality filed the petition alleging that the Orissa Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) was facilitating the project for a Bhubaneswar-based company by illegally diverting forest land.
- Arguing on behalf of the petitioners before NGT's east zone bench in Kolkata on April 12, advocate Sankar Prasad Pani wants the state authorities and the IDCO berestrained from accessing and using the forest land for industrial activity until approval of central government is obtained under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980.
- Pani also urged the tribunal to declare illegal and void the lease granted in favour at the site. of IDCO and subsequent transfer to the private party for want of forest clearance.
- The elephant pathway crosses through the project site and thereby, will obstruct the movement of the animals. This will lead to more man-elephant conflicts, the petition stated.