National Green Tribunal
Jagdish Kumar vs State Of Haryana on 23 September, 2021
Author: Adarsh Kumar Goel
Bench: Adarsh Kumar Goel
Item No. 04 (Court No. 1)
BEFORE THE NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL
PRINCIPAL BENCH, NEW DELHI
(By Video Conferencing)
Original Application No. 1011/2018
(With reports dated 03.06.2021 and 02.09.2021)
Jagdish Kumar Applicant
Versus
State of Haryana Respondent
Date of hearing: 23.09.2021
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ADARSH KUMAR GOEL, CHAIRPERSON
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SUDHIR AGARWAL, JUDICIAL MEMBER
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE BRIJESH SETHI, JUDICIAL MEMBER
HON'BLE DR. NAGIN NANDA, EXPERT MEMBER
Respondent: Mr. Rahul Khurana, Advocate for State of Haryana & HSPCB
ORDER
1. The issue for consideration is the remedial action for restoration of the site where garbage was unscientifically dumped at Gohana, District Sonepat, Haryana. The matter is covered by the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 wherein timelines are given for various steps to be taken. In the present case, the complaint is that collected garbage is creating air pollution, affecting public health.
2. The matter was considered on 08.05.2020 in the light of earlier order of this Tribunal dated 28.02.2020 and report of the Additional Chief Secretary dated 04.05.2020. It will be appropriate to extract the orders dated 28.02.2020 and 08.05.2020 which are as follows:-
Order dated 28.02.2020 1 "5. We may observe that non-compliance of rules relating to waste disposal results in damage to the environment and public health. Any failure needs to be visited with assessment and recovery of compensation for such damage from the persons responsible for such failure. A study was recently got conducted by CPCB, under orders of this Tribunal requiring such a study by a joint Committee comprising CPCB, NEERI and IIT, Delhi about the monetary cost of damage caused to the environment on account of existence of legacy waste dump site at Gurgaon (Bandhewadi) vide order dated 05.03.2019 in O.A. No. 514/2018. The report of the CPCB filed on 13.02.2020 is that damage on account of the said legacy waste dump site was Rs. 148.46 crore, on account of damage to the air quality, soil and water quality, climate change and disamenity (aesthetic). The damage has been assessed in terms of impact on health due to release of pollutants in air atmosphere, release of leachate into ground /surface water and soil, due to pollution from the landfill site, damage cost associated with climate change due to carbon di-oxide and methane, damage caused due to aesthetics loss, price depreciation due to disamenity cost etc.
6. Thus, monetary cost of every legacy dump site is expected to be huge depending upon the location, quantity of waste and area covered. Needless to say that there is huge cost for non-
compliance of other provisions relating to waste management - Solid as well as Liquid. Loss to the environment and public health is taking place not only on account of delay in clearing legacy waste but also for not complying with other provisions of the Rules resulting in huge gap in generation and processing of waste. It may be necessary to determine such cost for delay in clearing legacy waste at every dump site as well as for delay in complying with other rules and failure to treat sewage and recover the same from the persons responsible for action in the matter.
7. This Tribunal has directed1 recovery of interim compensation for delay in complying with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 in general as well as specific compensation for delay in remedying legacy waste dump sites in following terms:
"a. In view of the fact that most of the statutory timelines have expired and directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court and this Tribunal to comply with Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 remain unexecuted, interim compensation scale is hereby laid down for continued failure after 31.03.2020. The compliance of the Rules requires taking of several steps mentioned in Rule 22 from Serial No. 1 to 10 (mentioned in para 12 above). Any such continued failure will result in liability of every Local Body to pay compensation at the rate of Rs. 10 lakh per month per Local Body for population of above 1 Order dated 28.02.2020 in O.A. No. 606/2018 2 10 lakhs, Rs. 5 lakh per month per Local Body for population between 5 lakhs and 10 lakhs and Rs. 1 lakh per month per other Local Body from 01.04.2020 till compliance. If the Local Bodies are unable to bear financial burden, the liability will be of the State Governments with liberty to take remedial action against the erring Local Bodies. Apart from compensation, adverse entries must be made in the ACRs of the CEO of the said Local Bodies and other senior functionaries in Department of Urban Development etc. who are responsible for compliance of order of this Tribunal. Final compensation may be assessed and recovered by the State PCBs/PCCs in the light of Para 33 above within six months from today. CPCB may prepare a template and issue an appropriate direction to the State PCBs/PCCs for undertaking such an assessment in the light thereof within one month.
b. Legacy waste remediation was to 'commence' from 01.11.2019 in terms of order of this Tribunal dated 17.07.2019 in O.A. No. 519/2019 para 282 even though statutory timeline for 'completing' the said step is till 07.04.2021 (as per serial no. 11 in Rule 22), which direction remains unexecuted at most of the places and delay in clearing legacy waste is causing huge damage to environment in monetary terms as noted in para 33 above, pending assessment and recovery of such damage by the concerned State PCB within four months from today, continued failure of every Local Body on the subject of commencing the work of legacy waste sites remediation from 01.04.2020 till compliance will result in liability to pay compensation at the rate of Rs. 10 lakh per month per Local Body for population of above 10 lakhs, Rs. 5 lakh per month per Local Body for population between 5 lakhs and 10 lakhs and Rs. 1 lakh per month per other Local Body. If the Local Bodies are unable to bear financial burden, the liability will be of the State Governments with liberty to take remedial action against the erring Local Bodies. Apart from compensation, adverse entries must be made in the ACRs of the CEO of 2 The Chief Secretaries may ensure allocation of funds for processing of legacy waste and its disposal and in their respective next reports, give the progress relating to management of all the legacy waste dumpsites. Remediation work on all other dumpsites may commence from 01.11.2019 and completed preferably within six months and in no case beyond one year. Substantial progress be made within six months. We are conscious that the SWM Rules provide for a maximum period of upto five years for the purpose, however there is no reason why the same should not happen earlier, in view of serious implications on the environment and public health.3
the said Local Bodies and other senior functionaries in Department of Urban Development etc. who are responsible for compliance of order of this Tribunal. Final compensation may be assessed and recovered by the State PCBs/PCCs in the light of Para 33 above within six months from today.
a. xx
b. xx
c. Compensation in above terms may be deposited
with the CPCB for being spent on restoration of environment which may be ensured by the Chief Secretaries' of the States/UTs."
8. Let a further latest report be furnished by the Secretary Urban Local, Haryana by email at [email protected] before the next date. The Secretary Urban Development, Haryana may furnish the status of legacy waste dumped at other places in the State also."
Order dated 08.05.2020 "
1. Accordingly, a further status report has been filed on 04.05.2020 by the Additional Chief Secretary, Haryana, Urban Local Bodies Department with a plea that due to Covid-19, the compliance of the Rules could not be ensured. As already noted, the matter has been hanging fire for the last 20 years while Covid-19 situation has emerged only now. Moreover, the statutory timelines have expired and earlier binding orders have attained finality. Nothing tangible is shown to have been done, giving rise of incompetence and unwilling of the concerned officers to perform their duties for which their accountability has to be fixed.
2. Let the Chief Secretary, Haryana take further steps for ensuring compliance of directions already issued to ensure compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 and for coercive measures for failure of the concerned officers so far and furnish a further report before the next date by e-mail at [email protected]."
3. The matter was last considered on 13.10.2020 in the light of report dated 09.10.2020 filed by the Additional Chief Secretary, Haryana about the status of dumpsites and the quantity of legacy waste and the status of commencement of the work. The Tribunal held that the timelines were required to be preponed in view of mandate of the statutory rules and 4 continued damage to the environment by delay in clearing the legacy waste. The operative part of the order is reproduced below:
1 to 2. xxx ................................xxx ..............................xxx
3. Accordingly, a status report has been filed on 09.10.2020 by the Additional Chief Secretary, Haryana giving the status of the dumpsites and the quantity of legacy waste and the status of commencement of the work which is as follows:-
"On perusal of the aforesaid data it is revealed that out of the total legacy waste in the MCs of State, approximate 60.33 Lakh Metric Ton (93.44 % of total quantity of the State) legacy waste is lying at 22 dumpsites in the State and the detail of the same is as under :-
Sr. No. Name of Municipality Quantity of legacy waste (In Lakh MT)
1. Hisar 1.3
2. Gurugram 27.5
3. Ambala city 6.00
4. Panipat 5.00
5. Sirsa 0.48
6. Panchkula 3.96
7. Rohtak 3.95
8. Bahadurgarh 3.20
9. Yamunanagar-Jagadhri 1.76
10. Jind 1.00
11. Narnaul 0.59
12. Fatehbad 0.46
13. Charkhi Dadri 0.26
14. Gohana 0.42
15. Kaithal 0.8
16. Kharkhoda 0.24
17. Rewari 0.6
18. Sohna 0.51
19. Karnal 0.714
20. Mandi Dabwali 0.31
21. Bhiwani 1.15
22. Meham 0.13 Total 60.33 5 It is pertinent to mention that best efforts are being made by the municipalities to complete the work of bioremediation of legacy waste within the timeframe prescribed by this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal in the concern municipal areas.
4. That the following 05 municipalities have started bioremediation of legacy waste lying at the existing dumpsites:-
Sr. No Name of MC Quantity of Status
waste (In
Lakh MT)
1. Gurugram 27.5 Work in progress.
2. Rohtak 3.95 Work in progress.
3. Hisar 1.3 Work in progress.
4. Panchkula 3.96 Work in progress.
5. Bahadurgarh 3.2 Work in progress.
Total 39.91
That in addition to above, there are 17 Municipalities who have invited the fresh tenders for the bioremediation of legacy waste present at their existing dumpsites and their tenders have also been received. The detail of said 17 municipalities is as under:-
Sr. Name of MC Quantity of Status
No waste (In
Lakh MT)
1. Ambala 6.00 The work has been allotted to
agency.
2. Panipat 5.00 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
3. Yamunanagar 1.76 Bids have been received and are
under rate approval.
4. Bhiwani 1.15 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
5. Jind 1.00 Bids have been received and are
under rate approval.
6. Kaithal 0.8 The work has been allotted to
agency.
7. Fatehabad 0.46 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
6
8. Gohana 0.42 The work has been allotted to
agency.
9. Mandi Dabwali 0.31 Bids have been received and are
under rate approval.
10. Sirsa 0.48 Bids have been received and are
under rate approval.
11. Meham 0.13 Work has been allotted to
agency.
12. Rewari 0.60 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
13. Narnaul 0.59 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
14. Karnal 0.714 Tenders are being invited.
15. Kharkhoda 0.24 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
16. Sohna 0.51 Tenders are being invited.
17. Charkhi Dadri 0.26 Bids have been received and
likely to be allotted by
15.10.2020.
Total 20.42
The work on the above 17 sites is likely to be started in the end of October 2020. Approximate 60.33 Lakh Metric Ton of legacy waste (93.44 % of the total quantity) will be bio- remediated in these 22 sites.
For the small quantity of the legacy waste, Advisory on Landfill Reclamation issued by Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organization (CPHEEO), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs Government of India published in June 2020 was also circulated to all the Municipalities vide this office letter memo no. XEN-I/DGULB/2020/1843 dated 17.06.2020 (Annexure R-2) with directions to complete the bioremediation of legacy waste present at their existing dumping sites by engaging Equipment/Machinery on hiring basis.
It is pertinent to mention that the Directorate of Urban Local Bodies, Department is regularly reviewing the matter and vide this office letter memo no. Tech/NGT/DGULB/2020/3775 dated 07.10.2020 (Annexure R3), all the Municipalities have been directed to submit the monthly reports/status report regarding bioremediation of legacy waste by 5th of every month."
4. We have also seen the timelines laid down in the circular dated 17.06.2020, annexed to the report, which requires 7 that the work should start from 01.04.2020 and be completed by 07.04.2021.
5. In view of the fact that the date of 01.04.2020 has already gone and even if three months allowance is made for the lockdown, the work was expected to start from 01.07.2020 which may now start at the earliest, where ever not yet started, so as to be completed by 07.04.2021 in terms of earlier orders of this Tribunal and the circular issued by the Urban Development Department, Haryana. This may be monitored by the Chief Secretary Haryana. The CPCB may also monitor compiling of statistics on above pattern from all the States/UTs, in view of earlier order passed by the Tribunal in O.A No.606/2018, Compliance of Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 so that the consolidated report can be filed before this Tribunal.
6. The progress report as on 31.03.2021 may be filed before the next date by the Chief Secretary, Haryana by email at judicial- [email protected] preferably in the form of searchable PDF/ OCR Support PDF and not in the form of Image PDF."
4. In pursuance of above, further status reports have been filed by the Chief Secretary, Haryana on 03.06.2021, updated by report dated 02.09.2021 to the effect that part of the legacy waste has been cleared and clearance of the remaining waste will take time. The relevant part of the status report dated 02.09.2021 is reproduced below:
"1 to 2. xxx ......................xxx.....................................xxx
3. That the deponent is filing the instant additional status report with respect to the directions dated 13.10.2020 issued by this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal in the above-mentioned Application which are to be complied with by the Municipal Bodies in the State of Haryana. Accordingly, a comprehensive report regarding the status of bioremediation of legacy waste and the remedies being taken by the State of Haryana through the Municipalities in the State of Haryana has been prepared. Approximate 71.68 Lakh Metric Ton of legacy waste was lying at the dumping sites in Municipalities, out of which 67.64 lakh M.T. i.e. 94% of total quantity of the legacy waste is lying at 29 dumpsites in the State which also includes 33 lakh MT legacy waste at Bandhwari, Gurugram which has been dealt with by this Hon'ble Tribunal in separate case i.e. OA No. 514 of 2018 titled as Vivek Kamboj and ANR.V/s Union of India and others. The bio-remediation works at these 29 sites have been allotted to contractual agencies. Out of which work has been started at 23 sites and will be started very soon at other 06 sites. The remaining 4.04 lakh MT legacy waste is a small fraction of quantity lying at 47 dumpsites which will be also processed by 8 adopting suitable technology. The detail of the same is submitted for the kind perusal of this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal as under -
Status of bioremediation of legacy waste in the Municipalities of State of Haryana.
Estimated Estimated Quantity of waste
Quantity of Cost as Status of Processed upto
legacy per work 15.08.2021 (in
Sr.
Name of MC waste agreement MT)
No.
(In Lakh (in
MT) Crore)
Gurugrarn 33 Work in 1020158
1 -- progress
Rohtak 5.2 25.67 Work in 435000
2 progress
Ambala 6 35.73 Work in 354957
3 progress
Panchkula 3.96 37.5 Work in 127556
4 progress
Bahadurgarh 3.2 19.88 Work in 83842
5 progress
Narnaul 0.59 4.7 Work in 59000
6 progress
7 Kaithal 0.8 5.56 Work in 60000
progress
Gohana 0.42 2.68 Work in 32532
8 progress
Sirsa 0.45 3.44 Work in 44530
9 progress
Panipat 5 27.73 Work in 68500
10 progress
Palwal 0.21 1.26 Work in 18000
11 progress
Meham 0.14 1.11 Work in 8424
12 progress
Yamunan 1.27 Work in 57500
13 9.31 progress
Fatehabad 0.47 3.24 Work in 42011
14 progress
Gannaur 0.25 1.59 Work in 23500
15 progress
Rewari 0.6 4.02 Work in 36000
16 progress
Assandh 0.15 0.88 Work in 13400
17 progress
Cheeka 0.18 1.01 Work in 8000
18 progress
Mandi Dabwali 0.31 2.28 Work in 8400
19 progress
Jind 1 6.78 Work in 20000
20 progress
9
Kharkhoda 0.24 1.53 Work in 4000
21 progress
22 Nissing 0.15 0.94 Work in 13800
progress
23 Taraori 0.09 0.58 Work in 2148.38
progress
24 Gharaunda 0.2 1.23 Machinery 0
under
Installation
Bhiwani 1.15 8.15 Machinery 0
25 under
Installation
26 Nilokheri 0.11 0.69 Machinery 0
under
Installation
Charkhi Dadri 0.25 2.1 Machinery 0
27 under
Installation
Hisar 1.3 12.35 Machinery 0
28 under
Installation
Karnal 0.95 5.84 Machinery 0
29 under
Installation
24,81,258.38
say 24.81
Total 67.64 227.78 Total
Lakh MT
On perusal of the aforesaid data, it is clear that almost 24.81 lakh metric tonnes (36.67%) of legacy waste has already been processed in the above mentioned Municipalities upto15.08.2021. It is also relevant to mention here that MCs mentioned at Sr. No. 24-29 above where zero quantity of legacy waste is shown as processed is due to the recent award/finalization of the contracts or due to some technical difficulties such as mobilization & installation of machinery, arrangement of labour etc. being faced by the concerned municipalities. However, the requisite machineries are now under installation at these dumpsites and the waste processing shall be started very soon.
4. That it is relevant to mention here that in compliance of the order dated 13.10.2020 passed by this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal, the State Government has approved allocation of funds amounting to Rs. 262.67 crore for the above-mentioned municipalities. The 1st installment of Rs.44.59 crore has been released by the State Government to the Urban Local Bodies Department to implement the necessary measures for this purpose.
5. That accordingly, the State of Haryana is trying its best to manage bioremediation of legacy waste. However, some delay has occurred in completion of bio-remediation of legacy waste because of unavoidable constraints by 07.04.2021 but the State Government is committed to remove this legacy waste.
106. That all the Municipalities have taken necessary steps and measures to complete the aforesaid work in the timelines laid down i.e. 07.04.2021. Accordingly, the work of processing of bioremediation of legacy waste has been taken up on the dumpsites having maximum quantity of waste. Although, various difficulties due to COVID-19 pandemic were faced by Municipalities in arranging the manpower and machineries at sites, the process of bio-remediation has been started at fast pace and is likely to be processed before 31.07.2022. Therefore, it is humbly requested that timeline for this purpose may kindly be extended upto July, 2022.
7. That in view of the submissions made herein above, it is also submitted that financial status of municipalities in the State of Haryana is not sound and they are responsible to implement the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016. However, the State of Haryana is making all efforts to comply with the directions of this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal in the concerned Municipalities in the larger interest of public.
In view of the submissions and averments made above, it is humbly prayed as under:-
a. That considering the unavoidable circumstances which arose due to COVID-19 pandemic &upcoming monsoon months in which the work will remain on hault, the timeline for completing the work of complete processing of bioremediation of legacy waste may kindly be extended upto July, 2022.
b. That as explained in the aforesaid paras, the State of Haryana is taking all the necessary steps to manage the processing of bio-remediation of legacy waste in the urban areas. The State Government has also allocated sufficient funds for procuring requisite machinery and other equipment required for the processing of legacy waste and work has already been started at most of the dumpsites and it will also be functional on the other dumpsite very soon. It is therefore, humbly submitted that the State of Haryana may kindly be exempted to pay any type of compensation as observed by this Hon'ble National Green Tribunal in it's order dated 13.10.2020. Moreover, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic has also adversely affected the early progress of the processing system of legacy waste."
5. We have considered the matter. As observed earlier, violation of environmental laws needs to be taken seriously as it involves offences against the society and directly affects public health. As regards pandemic, action needs to be speeded up instead of slowed down as during pandemic adverse impact is more serious.11
6. In pursuance of directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court dated 02.09.2014 in Writ Petition No. 888/1996, Almitra H. Patel vs. Union of India & Ors., transferring the monitoring of compliance of solid waste management norms to this Tribunal, the Tribunal issued detailed directions vide judgment dated 22.12.20163 and thereafter in OA 606/2018, the Chief Secretaries, including Chief Secretary, Haryana were required to remain present in person on the issue of compliance of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 and other environmental obligations. Directions were issued for remedial action to be overseen personally by the Chief Secretaries by having a special cell in their office.
By a later order, the Tribunal has also laid down a schedule for compensation for delay in taking remedial steps. The said order dated 20.02.2020 in OA 606/2018. Has already been quoted earlier. We may also reproduce discussion in the said order in re: Compliance of Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 (State of Karnataka), applicable to all States, as follows:
" xxx .............................xxx .......................................xxx
3. The matter was earlier considered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court inter-alia vide judgments reported in (2000) 2 SCC 679 and (2004) 13 SCC 538 directing scientific disposal of waste by setting up of compost plants/processing plants, preventing water percolation through heaps of garbage, creating focused 'solid waste management cells' in all States and complying with the Municipal Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 (SWM Rules, 2016) on urgent basis. It was observed that the local authorities constituted for providing services to the citizens are lethargic and insufficient in their functioning which is impermissible. Non-
accountability has led to lack of effort on the part of the employees. Domestic garbage and sewage along with poor drainage system in an unplanned manner contribute heavily to the problem of solid waste. The number of slums have multiplied significantly occupying large areas of public land. Promise of free land attracts more land grabbers. Instead of "slum clearance" there is "slum creation" in cities which is further aggravating the problem of domestic waste being strewn in the open. Accordingly, the Court directed that provisions pertaining to sanitation and public health be 3 OA No. 199/2014 (2016) SCC Online NGT 2981 12 complied with, streets and public premises be cleaned daily, statutory authorities levy and recover charges from any person violating laws and ensure scientific disposal of waste, landfill sites be identified keeping in mind requirement of the city for next 20 years and environmental considerations, sites be identified for setting up of compost plants, steps be taken to prevent fresh encroachments and compliance report be submitted within eight weeks.
4. Further observations in the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court are:
4"3. The petitioner has handed over a note in the Court showing the progress that has been made in some of the States and also setting out some of the suggestions, including the suggestion for creation of solid waste management cell, so as to put a focus on the issue and also to provide incentives to those who perform well as was tried in some of the States. The said note states as under:
"1. As a result of the Hon'ble Supreme Court's orders on 26- 7-2004, in Maharashtra the number of authorisations granted for solid waste management (SWM) has increased from 32% to 98%, in Gujarat from 58% to 92% and in M.P. from NIL to 34%. No affidavits at all have been received from the 24 other States/UTs for which CPCB reported NIL or less than 3% authorisations in February 2004. All these States and their SPCBs can study and learn from Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat's successes.
2. All States/UTs and their SPCBs/PCCs have totally ignored the improvement of existing open dumps, due by 31-12-2001, let alone identifying and monitoring the existing sites. Simple steps can be taken immediately at almost no cost by every single ULB to prevent monsoon water percolation through the heaps, which produces highly polluting black run-off (leachate). Waste heaps can be made convex to eliminate standing water, upslope diversion drains can prevent water inflow, downslope diversion drains can capture leachate for recirculation onto the heaps, and disused heaps can be given soil cover for vegetative healing.
3. Lack of funds is no excuse for inaction. Smaller towns in every State should go and learn from Suryapet in A.P. (population 103,000) and Namakkal in T.N. (population 53,000) which have both seen dustbin-free 'zero garbage towns' complying with the MSW Rules since 2003 with no financial input from the State or the Centre, just good management and a sense of commitment.
4. States seem to use the Rules as an excuse to milk funds from the Centre, by making that a 4 (2004) 13 SCC 538 13 precondition for action and inflating waste processing costs 2-3 fold. The Supreme Court Committee recommended 1/3 contribution each from the city, State and Centre. Before seeking 70- 80% Centre's contribution, every State should first ensure that each city first spends its own share to immediately make its wastes non-polluting by simple sanitising/stabilising, which is always the first step in composting viz. inoculate the waste with cow dung solution or bio culture and placing it in windrows (long heaps) which are turned at least once or twice over a period of 45 to 60 days.
5. Unless each State creates a focussed 'solid waste management cell' and rewards its cities for good performance, both of which Maharashtra has done, compliance with the MSW Rules seems to be an illusion.
6. The admitted position is that the MSW Rules have not been complied with even after four years. None of the functionaries have bothered or discharged their duties to ensure compliance. Even existing dumps have not been improved. Thus deeper thought and urgent and immediate action is necessary to ensure compliance in future."
5. In this regard, reference may also be made to orders of Hon'ble Supreme Court in Municipal Council, Ratlam vs. Vardhichand5 and B.L. Wadhera v. Union of India and Ors.6 laying down that clean environment is fundamental right of citizens under Article 21 and it is for the local bodies as well as the State to ensure that public health is preserved by taking all possible steps. For doing so, financial inability cannot be pleaded.
xxx .............................xxx .......................................xxx
22. The Hon'ble Supreme Court vide order dated 25.11.20197 while dealing with the pollution in Delhi and NCR held:
"4. We see Yamuna river virtually turned into a sullage. We take judicial notice of this situation. Similar is the position with Ganges. As it proceeds, industrial effluents are being poured in rivers. Sewage is also being directly put in rivers contributing to the river water pollution. We direct the Pollution Control Boards of the various States as well as the Central Pollution Control Board and various Governments to place before us the data and material with respect to various rivers in the concerned States, and what steps they are taking to curb the pollution in such rivers and to management as to industrial effluents, sewage, garbage, waste and air pollution, including the water management. We club the pending case of water management with this matter.
5 (1980) 4 SCC 162 6 (1996) 2 SCC 594 7 Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 13029/1985, M.C. Mehta Vs. Union of India & Ors.14
10. As we have noted that from last several years, the position of air pollution is worsening in spite of various orders passed by this Court. The reports and the scientific data indicating that large section of people are suffering from the dreaded diseases due to such air pollution such as Cancer, Asthma and various other diseases. Life span is adversely affected. Time has come that the various States recognise right to life is important right. Human life and health have been put in danger. In such scenario, why they should not be required to pay compensation to such persons who are being affected by inadequate arrangement to check the air pollution, non-lifting of garbage, waste which add ultimately to the pollution.
11. In this case we find that Delhi is lacking the capacity to the extent of 45% to even clean the garbage/waste which is being generated. Similar is the situation in various other places. We take note of the situation which is alarming and time has come to remind the State machineries as to their duties as all of us are meant to serve the people of this great country. Our Constitution has envisaged certain Directive Principles as they are more important rights at the discretion of the Government. The Courts are not to interfere in that, but dereliction cannot be to the extent that the very right to life is endangered by the inaction.
13. Not only the basic Fundamental Rights are being ignored with respect to air and water, problem of governance are being projected, which cannot come into the way of the basic Fundamental Rights which a human enjoys, much less to talk of the Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles contained in the State policy which have already found statutory expression in the form of Municipal laws, Prevention of Air Pollution and Water Acts and various schemes framed by the Central Government and State Governments, but we see neither the air quality has improved nor the water quality in several States, not to talk of Delhi only. We have called for the report from Delhi Government where the reports indicate that the contaminated water is being supplied and also from Bureau of Indian Standards to submit report in this regard.
15. At the same time, as we find that in spite of various orders passed by this Court, we are not able to improve the situation of air quality which we can see at least in Delhi and NCR with certainty. Time has come to require the State Governments to explain why they should not be asked to compensate the persons who are being affected by bad air quality. Obviously, the State is run by the administration, why liability should not be imposed for such a tort on the concerned machinery also of the various States which are failing to discharge their basic duties. This Court in Municipal Council, Ratlam Vs. Vardhichand & Ors., reported in (1980) 4 SCC 162 has held they have to take proper and positive action in this direction. It is their bounden duty to provide civic amenities, and also to see that self- created bankruptcy does not come in the discharge of the statutory obligation which are necessary for existence of human life. We have seen during the course of the 15 arguments that one State is passing the burden upon the Centre and then it is stated on behalf of the Central Government that they have framed scheme and it for the State Governments to implement it. We expect not only the 'policy making' but also its 'implementation'. Let the States of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and the Government of NCT of Delhi respond, due to the air pollution, why the concerned Government and its concerned machinery, from top to bottom, should not be asked to compensate the citizens of Delhi and adjoining areas for various diseases which are being caused and sufferings and troubles which are being faced and the report indicates the life span is being shortened. Let show cause notice be issued to the various State Governments, and to the Chief Secretaries, to submit reply within six weeks. Let the matter be listed for consideration on 17.01.2020. The Chief Secretaries to the States of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Government of NCT of Delhi be personally present on that date."
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24. The Standing Committee on Urban Development, 16th Lok Sabha in its 25th Report dated 12.02.2019 considered the issue of solid waste management including hazardous waste, medical waste and e-waste and observed:
"It is estimated that about 65 million tonnes of waste is generated annually in the country out of which about 62 million tonnes is Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) which include organic waste, recyclables like paper, plastic, wood, glass etc. About 45-50% of this MSW is biodegradable/wet/organic waste, 20-25 % is recyclable waste & about 30-35% is inert/debris.
1.2 Only about 75-80% of the municipal waste gets collected and out of this only 22- 28% is processed and treated and remaining is deposited indiscriminately at dump yards. It is projected that by the year 2031, the MSW generation shall increase to 165 million tonnes and to 436 million tonnes by 2050. Eliminating, dumping and minimizing releases of hazardous chemicals by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management and reducing waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse globally have been one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that have been adopted by UN General Assembly in September, 2015.
1.3 It has been estimated that the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) spend about 60-70% of total expenditure on street sweeping, 20- 30% on transportation and less than 5% on municipal disposal of waste, which shows that hardly any attention is given to scientific disposal of waste. The waste collection efficiency in India ranges between 70% and 90% in major Metro cities, whereas in several smaller cities it is below 50%. However, if the current 62 million tones annual generation of MSW continues to be dumped without treatment; it will need 3.40 lakh cubic meter of landfill space every day. Considering the projected waste generation of 165 million tonnes by 2031, the requirement of 16 land for setting up landfill for 20 years (considering 10 meter high waste pile) could be as high as 66 thousand hectares (1240 hectare per year) of precious land, which our country cannot afford to waste. Currently, of the estimated 62 million tonnes of MSW generated annually by 377 million people in urban areas, more than 80% is disposed of indiscriminately at dump yards in an unhygienic manner by the municipal authorities leading to problems of health and environmental degradation.
1.4 As per NITI Aayog, presently, out of the total MSW generated, only 29.51% is subjected to treatment which, however, is poised to improve with the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban) scheme of Government of India being in full swing."
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28. The issue of solid and liquid waste needs to be taken seriously. We have already mentioned the available statistics on the subject. It is a matter of serious concern that legacy waste remediation has not even commenced at most of the sites even though statutory rules contemplate outer limit for completion of such remediation by 07.04.2021. Current processing of the waste generated and collected is also not taking place on regular basis. For any person travelling by train, hot spots of scattered garbage and overflowing sewage are common sights. Satisfactory sewage management also remains far cry. This unsatisfactory state of affairs must be remedied at the earliest and in a time bound manner by initiative at the highest level. Accountability needs to be fixed and consequences for failure clearly provided and enforced.
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39. In view of above, consistent with the directions referred to in Para 29 issued on 10.01.2020 in the case of UP, Punjab and Chandigarh which have also been repeated for other States in matters already dealt with, we direct:
a. In view of the fact that most of the statutory timelines have expired and directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court and this Tribunal to comply with Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 remain unexecuted, compensation scale is hereby laid down for continued failure after 31.03.2020. The compliance of the Rules requires taking of several steps mentioned in Rule 22 from Serial No. 1 to 10 (mentioned in para 12 above). Any such continued failure will result in liability of every Local Body to pay compensation at the rate of Rs. 10 lakh per month per Local Body for population of above 10 lakhs, Rs. 5 lakh per month per Local Body for population between 5 lakhs and 10 lakhs and Rs. 1 lakh per month per other Local Body from 01.04.2020 till compliance. If the Local Bodies are unable to bear financial burden, the liability will be of the State Governments with liberty to take remedial action against the erring Local Bodies. Apart from 17 compensation, adverse entries must be made in the ACRs of the CEO of the said Local Bodies and other senior functionaries in Department of Urban Development etc. who are responsible for compliance of order of this Tribunal.
b. Legacy waste remediation was to 'commence' from 01.11.2019 in terms of order of this Tribunal dated 17.07.2019 in O.A. No. 519/2019 para 288 even though statutory timeline for 'completing' the said step is till 07.04.2021 (as per serial no. 11 in Rule 22), which direction remains unexecuted at most of the places. Continued failure of every Local Body on the subject of commencing the work of legacy waste sites remediation from 01.04.2020 till compliance will result in liability to pay compensation at the rate of Rs. 10 lakh per month per Local Body for population of above 10 lakhs, Rs. 5 lakh per month per Local Body for population between 5 lakhs and 10 lakhs and Rs. 1 lakh per month per other Local Body. If the Local Bodies are unable to bear financial burden, the liability will be of the State Governments with liberty to take remedial action against the erring Local Bodies. Apart from compensation, adverse entries must be made in the ACRs of the CEO of the said Local Bodies and other senior functionaries in Department of Urban Development etc. who are responsible for compliance of order of this Tribunal.
c. Further, with regard to thematic areas listed above in para 20, steps be ensured by the Chief Secretaries in terms of directions of this Tribunal especially w.r.t. plastic waste, bio-medical waste, construction and demolition waste which are linked with solid waste treatment and disposal. Action may also be ensured by the Chief Secretaries of the States/UTs with respect to remaining thematic areas viz. hazardous waste, e- waste, polluted industrial clusters, reuse of treated water, performance of CETPs/ETPs, groundwater extraction, groundwater recharge, restoration of water bodies, noise pollution and illegal sand mining.
d. The compensation regime already laid down for failure of the Local Bodies and/or Department of Irrigation and Public Health/In-charge Department to take action for treatment of sewage in terms of observations in Para 34 above will result in liability to pay compensation as already noted above which are reproduced for ready reference:
8The Chief Secretaries may ensure allocation of funds for processing of legacy waste and its disposal and in their respective next reports, give the progress relating to management of all the legacy waste dumpsites. Remediation work on all other dumpsites may commence from 01.11.2019 and completed preferably within six months and in no case beyond one year.
Substantial progress be made within six months. We are conscious that the SWM Rules provide for a maximum period of upto five years for the purpose, however there is no reason why the same should not happen earlier, in view of serious implications on the environment and public health.
18i. Interim measures for phytoremediation/ bioremediation etc. in respect of 100% sewage to reduce the pollution load on recipient water bodies - 31.03.2020. Compensation is payable for failure to do so at the rate of Rs. 5 lakh per month per drain by concerned Local Bodies/States (in terms of orders dated 28.08.2019 in O.A. No. 593/2017 and 06.12.2019 in O.A. No. 673/2018) w.e.f. 01.04.2020.
ii. Commencement of setting up of STPs - 31.03.2020.
Compensation is payable for failure to do so at the rate of Rs. 5 lakh per month per STP by concerned Local Bodies/States (in terms of orders dated 28.08.2019 in O.A. No. 593/2017 and 06.12.2019 in O.A. No. 673/2018) w.e.f. 01.04.2020.
iii. Commissioning of STPs - 31.03.2021. Compensation is payable for failure to do so at the rate of Rs. 10 lakh per month per STP by concerned Local Bodies/States (in terms of orders dated 28.08.2019 in O.A. No. 593/2017 and 06.12.2019 in O.A. No. 673/2018) w.e.f. 01.04.2021.
e. Compensation in above terms may be deposited with the CPCB for being spent on restoration of environment which may be ensured by the Chief Secretaries' of the States/UTs.
f. An 'Environment Monitoring Cell' may be set up in the office of Chief Secretaries of all the States/UTs within one month from today, if not already done for coordination and compliance of above directions which will be the responsibility of the Chief Secretaries of the States/UTs.
g. Compliance reports in respect of significant environmental issues may be furnished in terms of order dated 07.01.2020 quarterly with a copy to CPCB."
7. In view of above, non-compliance of statutory rules cannot be appreciated. Timeline being statutory and violation being criminal offence under the law of the land, the Tribunal cannot allow what is prohibited in law. Prayer for extending the time beyond the statutory date has, thus, to be rejected. The State may take further action to uphold the law, including against the violators, record adverse ACRs against the officers responsible for delay and deposit compensation as already directed. The Chief Secretary, Haryana may file a further status report within three months 19 by e-mail at [email protected] preferably in the form of searchable PDF/OCR Support PDF and not in the form of Image PDF. The CPCB and Haryana State PCB, with State PCB as nodal agency for coordination and compliance, may jointly verify some of the sites where biomining has been taken up to ascertain whether the guidelines/SOP prepared by CPCB are being followed and ensuring that the material recovered/rejects arising out of biomining process are properly routed to the authorized user/recyclers.
It may also be ascertained as to how much land has been recovered out of the biomining process. Joint report may be filed before the Tribunal within three months with its copy to the Secretary, Urban Development, Haryana by 30.12.2021 for response of the Chief Secretary to the observations, if any, requiring response.
List for further consideration on 24.01.2022.
A copy of this order be forwarded to the Chief Secretary, Haryana, Secretary, Urban Development, Haryana, CPCB and Haryana State PCB by e-mail for compliance.
Adarsh Kumar Goel, CP Sudhir Agarwal, JM Brijesh Sethi, JM Dr. Nagin Nanda, EM September 23, 2021 Original Application No. 1011/2018 DV 20