Delhi High Court - Orders
Apeejay Education Society Regd & Anr vs Municipal Corporation Of Delhi & Ors on 20 December, 2023
Author: Prateek Jalan
Bench: Prateek Jalan
$~15
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ W.P.(C) 16498/2023
APEEJAY EDUCATION SOCIETY REGD
& ANR. ..... Petitioners
Through: Mr. Sanjeev Ralli, Sr. Adv. with
Mr. Shubham Yadav, Mr. Ravi
Kant Yadav, Advocates.
versus
MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF DELHI
& ORS. ..... Respondents
Through: Mr. Manu Chaturvedi, SC with Mr.
Rajeev Ranjan Jha, Executive
Engineer, MCD.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE PRATEEK JALAN
ORDER
% 20.12.2023 CM APPL. 66472/2023 (for exemption) Exemption allowed, subject to all just exceptions. The application stands disposed of.
W.P.(C) 16498/2023 & CM APPL. 66471/2023 (for interim relief)
1. Issue notice. Mr. Manu Chaturvedi, learned Standing Counsel, accepts notice on behalf of the respondents.
2. The petitioners have established a school in Sheikh Sarai, New Delhi. They have filed this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution for an order restraining the Municipal Corporation of Delhi ["MCD"] from making a municipal waste/garbage dumping, storage and W.P.(C) 16498/2023 Page 1 of 5 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 21/12/2023 at 23:33:32 compressing site i.e., Fixed Compactor Transport Station ["FCTS"] at a site adjoining the school. They seek a further direction that the FCTS facility may be constructed by MCD at a location which is far away from the petitioners' school and other educational institutions.
3. The contention of Mr. Sanjeev Ralli, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners, is that the proposed location of the FCTS near the school entrance has the potential of emitting noxious fumes and causing health hazards to the students of the school, and that such facilities should be constructed only at a considerable distance from educational institutions, hospitals etc.
4. Mr. Ralli also refers to an order of the National Green Tribunal ["NGT"] dated 21.02.2014 in R.C. Jain vs. Government of NCT of Delhi & Ors. in O.A No. 289/2013, in which the construction of a dhalao site in the vicinity of schools was challenged. He submits that in the said judgment, MCD itself took the stand that when they choose a place for the purpose of a dumping yard, they shall take into consideration that such places cannot be chosen near hospitals and schools where people gather in large numbers.
5. Mr. Chaturvedi submits, at the outset, that there is no legal impediment to the establishment of the FCTS at the location chosen by MCD. He submits that MCD has proposed to construct the present FCTS in place of an open dhalao which was existing at the site. He has handed over a photograph to show the state of the site prior to commencement of construction of the proposed FCTS. The said photograph is reproduced below:
W.P.(C) 16498/2023 Page 2 of 5This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 21/12/2023 at 23:33:32
6. Mr. Chaturvedi states that the open dhalao at the site, was in existence for at least 20 years, having been constructed pursuant to a judgment of the Supreme Court in B.L. Wadehra vs. Union of India (1996) 2 SCC 594, paragraph 12 whereof mandated construction of additional garbage collection centres in the form of dhalaos/trolley/steel bins within four months. Mr. Chaturvedi has also handed up a communication dated 14.12.2023 addressed by the concerned Executive Engineer of MCD to the Executive Engineer, Public Works Department ["PWD"], Government of NCT of Delhi which also mentions that the FCTS in question is being constructed "in place of an existing dilapidated dhalao." It is stated in the said letter that the dhalao was earlier being used for collection of garbage and the concerned Department has decided to convert it into a FCTS facility for better waste management of the area. A copy of the said communication is taken on record.
7. Mr. Chaturvedi submits that the effort is now to replace the dhalao with a compactor facility where municipal waste would be stored in a closed container and compacted. No further processing of waste would be W.P.(C) 16498/2023 Page 3 of 5 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 21/12/2023 at 23:33:33 undertaken at the location. Mr. Chaturvedi, by way of a representative example, has handed over a photograph of an FCTS facility constructed at another location. The said photograph is reproduced below:
The petitioners have also annexed photographs of an existing FCTS facility as Annexure P-2 to the writ petition.
8. Having heard learned counsel for the parties, for the present, I do not consider it appropriate to grant an order of stay of construction of the FCTS facility. The issue of solid waste management in the city requires appropriate facilities to be constructed at various locations. In the present case, the fact that an open dhalao was existing near the petitioners' school is admitted in paragraph 20 of the writ petition itself, although it is contended that it was of a much smaller size than the proposed FCTS and somewhat further away from the entry gate of the school. The W.P.(C) 16498/2023 Page 4 of 5 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 21/12/2023 at 23:33:33 photographs reproduced above, prima facie show that the proposed FCTS facility would, in fact, be a more hygienic and environment friendly facility then the pre-existing dhalao.
9. The judgment of the NGT relied upon by Mr. Ralli appears to be passed in the context of dumping enclosures/dhalaos. One of the contentions which found favour with the NGT was that the garbage is "likely to be retained for days together" at the site in question. In contrast, Mr. Chaturvedi states upon instructions from Mr. Rajeev Ranjan Jha, Executive Engineer, MCD, there would be no open garbage at the FCTS side, and that the entire compactor would be transported to the waste to energy site when filled, which is likely to be approximately three times a day. The adoption of FCTS facilities in place of open garbage dhalaos, thus prima facie appears to address this concern to some extent.
10. Although no order of stay is passed at this stage, it is made clear that the construction of the FCTS at the proposed site will be subject to further orders in the writ petition.
11. In the meanwhile, in the event the petitioners wish to engage with the PWD/police authorities to minimise inconvenience to the students in ingress and egress to the school, they are free to do so.
12. Counter affidavit be filed by MCD within four weeks. Rejoinder thereto, if any, may be filed within two weeks thereafter.
13. List on 20.03.2024.
PRATEEK JALAN, J DECEMBER 20, 2023 "Bhupi"/ W.P.(C) 16498/2023 Page 5 of 5 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 21/12/2023 at 23:33:33