SC denies KoPT stay on Orissa HC order

In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Monday denied to grant an interim stay on the order of the Orissa High Court quashing the notification of the Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) for unilateral extension of the port limit.

KoPT, which has gone to the Supreme Court against the Orissa HC order, had sought stay on the operation of this directive.

While denying to give any interim relief to KoPT on the matter, the bench of the apex court, comprising Justice DK Jain and Justice Anil R Dave, has served notices directing the opposite parties Dahmara port, Orissa government, Suvarnarekha port to file their counter in three weeks, said Sarthak Nayak, Counsel for Dhamara Port Company Ltd (DPCL).

In its final order, the Orissa High Court on November 25, 2011, had scrapped the notifications issued by the Ministry of shipping and KoPT for expansion of the port limits.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had also rejected the special leave petition (SLP) filed by the KoPT challenging the interim order of the Orissa High Court on the port limit expansion issue.

It may be noted that Keonjhar Nava Nirman Parishad, an NGO (non-governmental organization), had filed the PIL in the Orissa High Court, seeking scrapping of the notification issued on November 10, 2010. Later Dhamara Port Company Ltd (DPCL) had become a party to the case and Subarnarekha Port authorities had filed a similar case in the High Court, opposing KoPT's move.

All these legal battle had emerged after KoPT unilaterally came out with notification extending the Kolkata Port limits more than 200 km south of Haldia into the Bay of Bengal, covering an area of 28,646 sq km and in the process, blocking the entire coast of North Orissa where seven ports were proposed to come up. The sites where these new ports were to be established are Chudamani, Chandipur, Inchudi, Subarnarekha mouth, Bichitrapur and Bahabalpur.