NGT slaps Rs 25L fine on Numaligarh Refinery

The National Green Tribunal today slapped an environment compensation of Rs 25 lakh on Assam- based Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) for destruction of forest cover in Golaghat district to construct a boundary wall for a golf course.
While directing NRL to demolish the boundary wall near Deopahar protected reserve forest (DPRF) within a month as it blocked the movement of elephants, the green panel restrained the refinery from constructing a proposed township in the area as it fell under No Development Zone (NDZ) notification issued by Environment Ministry in 1996.
It also directed NRL to carry out afforestation of ten times the number of trees felled by it and asked Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Assam government to ensure that no development activities takes place within a radius of 15 kms of the refinery.

"As regards the wall with barbed wire fencing which comes in way of Elephant Corridor, the same should be demolished. The area, where the wall has come up and the proposed township is to come up is a part of DPRF. It also falls within NDZ notification, issued by 'MoEF' in 1996. Thereby, any non- forest activity thereon would be in violation of the decision of the Apex Court in T N Godavarman case (1996).
"Thus, the wall should be demolished within a period of one month and the proposed township should not come up in the present location. Further, for causing environmental damage by destruction of forest cover and flattening of the hill to build the golf course, NRL will pay environmental compensation of Rs 25,00,000 to the Assam Forest department," a bench headed by NGT chairperson justice Swatanter Kumar said.

The NGT also directed the Assam government to shut down the polluting activities of the stone crushers and brick kilns in the area and take urgent steps to notify Deopahar protected reserve forest into Reserved Forest to prevent further loss to the ecology which is close to the Kaziranga National Park.
The judgement came on a plea filed by Rohit Choudhary, a resident of Assam, seeking directions to immediately demolish the concrete wall constructed by Numaligarh Refinery Limited near Deopahar protected reserve forest as it was obstructing movement of elephants.