- VILAKSHANA
SINGH, Age ..32 Years
S/O
Late Sh. Jagdish Singh Dogra,
R/O
Sidhra, By Pass, Jammu.
2. DEWAKAR
SHARMA Age 35
Years
S/O
Sh. Dharam Parkash Sharma
R/O
29, Vinayak Bazar, Jammu
……..PETITIONERS
V/S
1. UNION
OF INDIA
THROUGH
SECRETARY
MINISTRY
OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS,
PARYAVARAN
BHAWAN,
C
G O COMPLEX,
LODI
ROAD, NEW DELHI
– 110003.
2. STATE
OF J&K
THROUGH
CHIEF SECRETARY,
CIVIL
SECRETARIAT, JAMMU.
3. COMMISSIONER/SECRETARY
TO
J&K GOVT. INCHARGE,
DEPARTMENT
OF FOREST AND WILD LIFE
CIVIL
SECRETARIAT, JAMMU.
4. NATIONAL
BOARD FOR WILD LIFE
THROUGH
CHAIRPERSON
PARYAVARAN
BHAWAN,
C
G O COMPLEX,
LODI
ROAD, NEW DELHI – 110003.
5. STATE
BOARD FOR WILD LIFE
THROUGH
CHAIR PERSON
CIVIL
SECRETARIAT, JAMMU.
6. J&K
MINERAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION,
THROUGH
ITS CHAIRMAN
33-B/B,
IIND EXTENSION, GANDHINAGAR, JAMMU
- 180 004.
7. NATIONAL
MINERAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION
THROUGH
ITS CHAIRMAN
KHANIJ
BHAVAN, MASAB TANK, HYDERABAD
– 500028.
8. J&K
CHIEF WILD LIFE WARDEN
CIVIL
SECRETARIAT, JAMMU.
9. SHRI
MATA VAISHNO DEVI SHRINE BOARD,
THROUGH
ITS CHAIRMAN
KATRA
VAISHNO DEVI,
REASI.
10.
. STATE POLLUTION CONTROL
BOARD
THROUGH
ITS CHAIRMAN,
NARWAL JAMMU.
RESPONDENTS
IN
THE MATTER OF:
Public
Interest Litigation Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India
read with Section 103 of the Constitution of Jammu and Kashmir for issuance of
an appropriate writ, order or direction in the nature of writ of:
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside the order in pursuance of letter dated 3rd
May 2011 issued by Respondent No.1 granting environmental clearance to Project
No. F.No.J-11011/348/2009-IA II(I) in favour of Respondent No.6;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 4 and
2 in pursuance of recommendations made by Standing Committee of
Respondent No. 4 in its 22nd meeting held on 25th April
2011 wherein recommendations for denotification of Trikuta Wild Life sanctuary
was made;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 4 and
2 in pursuance of recommendations made by Standing Committee of
Respondent No. 4 in its 23nd meeting held on 14 Oct 2011 wherein
permission to extract 1240000 TPA High Grade Magnasite Diposit at Chipprian
Hills and setting up of 30000 TPA of dead burnt Magnesia Plant at Village
Panthal, Katra Reasi was granted in favour of Respondent No. 6 ;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 5 & 8
wherein recommendations were made for denotification of Trikuta Wild Life
Sanctuary and recommendations to extract 1240000 TPA High Grade Magnasite
Diposit at Chipprian Hills and setting up of 30000 TPA of dead Burnt Magnesia
Plant at Village Panthal, Katra Reasi were made;
MANDAMUS
directing Respondent No.9 to not to alienate the land held and owned by it in
violation of the provisions of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act,1988.
Such
other additional or alternative relief, which this Hon’ble Court may in the
facts and circumstances of the case deem fit and proper, be also passed in
favour of the petitioners.
May It Please Your Lordships,
The Petitioners most
respectfully submits as under;
The
Petitioners most respectfully submit as under:-
1. That
the petitioners are the citizens of India and are permanent residents
of State of J&K. Apart
from this the petitioners are advocates by profession and are social activists.
The petitioners on various occasions have acted and participated actively in
safeguarding the legal rights of citizen of India, particularly the persons
belonging to the economically weaker sections of society. The petitioners
profess Sanatan Dharm and are devotees of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine. The
petitioners have been associated with various social, environmental and Human
Rights organizations and also took active participations in the events and
workshops organized by these organizations which include AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL. The petitioners are also associated and actively
participated in the workshops organized by SANGARSH RIGHT TO INFORMATION
MOVEMENT and WISCOMP INDIA (Women
in Security, Conflict, Management and Peace).
2. The
instant petition is being filed by the petitioners representing the weaker
sections of the community residing within the municipal area of Katra in
district Reasi and General Public at large seeking a writ or order or direction
in the nature of mandamus upon the respondents commanding them to forbear from
changing or disturbing the environment and ecological pattern of land in
respect of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary
situated in Katra for the ostensible purpose of extracting Magnasite and setting
up of plant of Dead Burnt Magnasite at Chipprian Hills, Chandwan and Panthal
Village in district Reasi of Jammu at the instance of respondents or for any
other purpose which might cause any such disturbance of ecology and
environment.
3. The
petitioners submit that such extraction through mining, if effected would not
only cause disaster to the ecology and environment of municipal area but it
would be in violation of J & K Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1978, Shri Mata
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act, 1988, Constitution of India as applicable to
State of J & K and various guidelines of Apex Court issued time and again
in catena of judgments.
4. That
the land on which extraction of Magnasite is to be carried out and on which the
plant for Dead Burnt Magnasite is to established (herein after to be referred
as Project Site) is on the private land exclusively owned and possessed by Sri
Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. As per letter issued by Government of India
dated 3rd May 2011, the Project Site is located at 4 to 5 Kms
distance radius of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary, at a distance of 2.9 Kms from altaf.hussain180 ----Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine and
around 3 Kms from Panthal town.
5. That
on 14/1/2011, a news item appeared in the leading National Newspaper “THE
INDIAN EXPRESS”. It was reported in the said news that the Ministry of
Environment and Forests had given environmental clearance to the project to be
undertaken by Respondent no. 7 and 6 for mining of Magnesite and setting up of
a plant for production Dead Burnt Magnesia at Panthal near Holy and famous
Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi. After reading the said news the petitioners
downloaded a copy of the letter issued by Respondent no. 1 from the official
website of respondent no.1. A copy of the said letter has been attached
herewith as ANNEXURE-A
6. That
the above said sanction letter reveals that the respondent no.1 has given
sanction to the proposal of respondent no. 6 (M/S J&K Mineral Development
Corporation Ltd) for setting up of 0.03MTPA Dead Burnt Magnesite (DBM) plant
with Magnesite mine (0.124 MTPA) at Chipprian hills and Panthal
villages, District Reasi, Jammu and Kashmir. The said letter further reveals
that the land requirement for the proposed plant is 19 ha. And the total land
area for the mine and plant is 45.52ha. The total mining lease area is 485.3
ha. And the entire mine lease area belongs to Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine
Board as per the said sanction letter.
7. That
the environmental clearance was given subject to various specific and general
conditions. One of the specific conditions imposed was that environmental
condition is subject to obtaining clearance under the Wild life Protection Act,
1972 from the National Board for Wild Life.
8. That
obtaining clearance under the Wild Life Protection Act was necessary as the
“Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary” is situated adjacent to mining area and is at a
distance of 3 km from the mining pit. It is pertinent to mention here
that the Indian Wild Life Protection Act, 1972 is not applicable to the State
of J&K. State of J&K has its own Act which is J&K State Wild Life
(Protection) Act, 1978.
9. That
from the web site of respondent no. 1, the petitioners came to know that the
Standing Committee of respondent no. 4 (NBWL) has in its 22nd
meeting held on 25-4-2011 recommended the denotification of the entire area of
the Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary. The said denotification was
recommended subject to the certain conditions specified therein. A copy
extracts of the minutes of 22nd meeting Standing Committee of
Respondent no. 4 (National Board for Wild Life) is attached herewith as ANNEXURE-B.
10. That
Ms. Prerna Bindra , a member of the standing committee of NBWL had raised
serious concern on the denotification of the Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary. She
had e-mailed her dissent to be recorded officially. The text of her e-mail as
recorded in the minutes of 22nd meeting of Standing Committee of
NBWL are reproduced as under:-
“This
notification sets up a very precedent of denotifying entire sanctuaries. It
has been decided this in lieu of the denotification another PA should be
declared. As pointed out by Dr. MK Ranjitsinh, such a site- double the area of
the current notification should be identified with a proper biodiversity
survey, and put before the Board and first notified as a PA before any
denotification of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary.”
11.
That after the denotification of the
Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary was recommended in the 22nd Meeting of
the Standing Committee of the Respondent no.4, the proposal for mining 1240000
TPA high grade Magnesite deposit at Chipprian Hills and setting up of 30,000
TPA Dead Burnt Magnesia Plant at Panthal near Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary was
considered and recommended by Standing Committee of National Board for Wild
Life subject to certain conditions mentioned therein in its 23rd
meeting held on 14.10.2011. The said proposal categorically mentioned that
it did not involve any felling of trees. A copy of the said proposal and
the extracts of minutes of the 23rd meeting of Standing Committee of
NBWL are, respectively, attached herewith as ANNEXURE-C and ANNEXURE-D.
12.
That when the petitioner no. 1 came to
know that the Dead Burnt Magnesite (DBM) plant is to be constructed and
Magnesite mining is to be carried out on the land owned by Shri Mata Vaishno
Devi Shrine Board, he filed an application dated 16.12.2011 under section 6 of
J&K RTI , 2009. By virtue of the said application the petitioner no.1
sought information regarding the resolutions passed by the respondent no. 9 in
respect the above said DBM plant and the Magnesite mine. The Public
Information Officer for respondent no. 9 provided the information to the
petitioner no.1 vide his letter no. SMVDSB/CEO/ST/903 DATED 27/012012. A
copy each of the said application under RTI and said letter is attached herewith
as ANNEXURE-E and ANNEXURE-F.
13.
That the information provided by the
Public Information Officer for the respondent no. 9 clearly reveals that Lease
in respect of the land in possession of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board
was given by the State Government without any resolution of the Shrine Board.
The information further revealed that even the permission of the Shrine Board
for granting mining lease, setting up of DBM plant and carrying out Magnesite
mining was not sought by the respondents. The said information further revealed
that NMDC has sought information about the cost of the compensatory
afforestation and felling of trees in an area of 26.42 hectares under the
possession of the Shrine Board for carrying out mining operation as per the Mining
Lease. It is pertinent to mention here that as per the provisions of the Shri
Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act, 1988, “No land or immoveable property
held by the Board shall be alienated except by a resolution of the Board.”
14.That
the petitioners seek indulgence of this Hon’ble Court inter alia on the
grounds which are based on various aspects as described herein after :-
ON ASPECT OF LEGALITY:
a. That
the impugned orders are void and illegal as the same has been made
without adopting due process of law.
b. That
the recommendation passed by the Standing Committee of NBWL in its 22nd
meeting dated 25.04.2011 for denotification of Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary is
without jurisdiction. It is pertinent to mention here that the Indian
Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 is not applicable to the State of J&K. State of J&K has its own Act which is
J&K Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1978. National Board for Wild Life has been
constituted under the Indian Wild Life Protection Act, 1972. But the said Act
is not applicable to the state of J&K. The sub-section
(2) of Section 25-A of J&K Wild Life Protection Act, 1978 provides that “No
alteration of the boundaries of a sanctuary shall be made except on the
recommendation of the Board and a resolution to this effect passed by both
Houses of the State Legislature.”
Denotification
of a sanctuary involves alteration of boundaries and hence the denotification
of a Wild Life Sanctuary in the State of J&K can be done only on the
recommendations of State Wild Life Board and after the resolution to this
effect is passed by both the houses of State Legislature. The recommendation
made by Standing committee by NBWL is based only on the recommendation of SBWL
and Chief wild Life warden wherein no where it is Stated that any resolution
was ever been passed by Both the Houses of J&K State Legislature.
Therefore, all the orders and recommendations which were passed in pursuance to
the representation/recommendations made by Respondent Nos. 2,5, 6 and 8 are
null and void as the same has been made by misrepresentation of facts and in
contraventions of the Laws of land.
c. That
the recommendation passed by the Standing Committee of NBWL in its 23rd
meeting dated 14.10.2011 for mining 1240000 TPA high grade Magnesite deposit at
Chipprian Hills and setting up of 30,000 TPA Dead Burnt Magnesia Plant at
Panthal near Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary is also without jurisdiction for the
above stated reasons. Moreover the recommendation for setting up of DBM plant
and for carrying out Magnesite extraction by mining and blasting was passed on
the basis of the fact that the Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary was already allowed
to be denotified by the Standing Committee of NBWL in its 22nd
meeting. Since the basic recommendation for denotification of Trikuta Wild Life
Sanctuary is illegal, the recommendation given by the Standing Committee of
NBWL for setting up of DBM plant and for carrying out Magnesite mining is bad
in law.
d. That
the land over which the mining has to be carried out and the DBM plant has to
be set up is the private land of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
Under the provisions of Section 17 of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board
Act, 1988, “No land or immoveable property held by the Board can be
alienated except by a resolution of the Board.” That the information
provided by the Public Information Officer of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine
Board clearly states that there is no such resolution passed by Shri Mata
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. It is further stated in the said information that
even the permission of the Board has not been sought for in order to carry out
said mining and setting up said plant. Thus the mining lease granted by
the Govt. of J&K is in violation of the Section 17 of the Shri Mata
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act, 1988. But surprisingly the Respondent No. 9
instead of safeguarding its rights is bent upon to alienate the property of the
Board in contravention of the provisions of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board
Act, 1988 in connivance with rest of respondents.
e. That
the environmental clearance given by the Respondent no. 1 is subject to
obtaining clearance from Respondent no. 4 NBWL, it is submitted herein that
since the recommendations given by Respondent no. 4 are illegal and through
misrepresentation therefore any clearance given by Respondent no. 1 is illegal
and void abintio. The submissions made herein above can established from the
fact that the proposal submitted by Respondent no. 6 stated that above said
project did not involve any felling of trees. However the information
furnished by Respondent no. 9 states that respondent no. 4 has sought
information about the cost of compensatory afforestation and felling of tress
in an area of 26.42 Ha. under the possession of Respondent no. 9 for carrying
out mining operation as per mining lease. However Respondent no. 6 in its
Directors’ report for the year 2009-10 in their Website states that demand note
of Rs. 2.36 Crore has been raised by Respondent no. 9 towards the cost of
felled trees, compensatory afforestation and net present value of land of 26.42
Ha. Based on this report as published by Respondent no. 6 it clearly reveals
that not even a single inch of land has ever been legally alienated by
Respondent no. 9, SMVDSB. Further nowhere in any report or recommendation by
any respondent has ever mentioned the ownership of land by respondent no. 9 and
impact of mining on the Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi. The copy of
Director’s Report published by Respondent No. 6 on the web site of Respondent
No. 4 for the year 2009-2010 is attached herewith as ANNEXURE G.
f.
That as per the information
provided by Respondent No. 9, no expert opinion was ever sought by it regarding
the impact of mining on Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine and its Flora and Fauna
which is again a failure on the part of Respondent No. 9 in safeguarding the
welfare of property vested to it under Shrine Board Act.
g. That
as per the list of clearances published by Respondent No.1 in its website
indicated that no Public Hearing was ever done which was essential pre
requisite for granting environment clearance to the said Project.
ON
ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECT :
h.
That Honourable Supreme Court of India has taken serious notes in catena of
Judgments and has expressed its dissent views on the denotification of
National Reserves and Wildlife Sanctuaries which includes all protected areas
for mining and other commercial projects and activities. The respondents in
order to give legal framework to the project has first recommended the
denotification of the entire Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary and then the
proposal for mining was passed on the assurance by Respondent(s) no. 2,5,6 and
8 that an alternative site shall be identified in order to maintain the
statistics only and this action of the above said respondents is unfeasible,
impracticable and beyond the scope of reasonableness so far as the existence of
flora and fauna of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary and Trikuta Forests are
concerned.
i.
That the Trikuta Wildlife
Sanctuary is inhabited by rare and endangered species like Leopard, Goral,
Peafowl, Wolf, Langoor, Macaw and various other species of animals and birds.
Apart from these the Trikuta Forest and Trikuta Wildlife Range is also famous
for various botanical and zoological species and serves as living
laboratories for testing out and demonstrating integrated management of land,
water and biodiversity. Variety of trees like Silk Cotton Tree , Chinese
Tallow Tree , Indian Odina Tree , Indian Smoke Bush , Maples, green leafy Pines
,Laurels , Monkey Face Trees and leafless Maples , Spindle Trees and Horse
Chestnut Trees, Indian Jonquil , Narcissus tazetta locally called Heer minjar
in Dogri and Yamberjal in Kashmiri, Indian Collyrium , Colchicum luteum locally
called Surunjaa in Dogri and Virkimposh in Kashmiri, Silk Cotton Trees ,Bombax
ceiba (Simbal ) and Indian Coral Tree ,Erythrina indica (Thubb )get laden with
deep red flowers to provide feast to the alluring birds like Mynas ,Crows
,Treepies and Drongos, brilliant blooms of Indian Rose Tree , Rhododendron
arboretum ( Chew , Madhaal ,Buraans ) .Now , floral basket of nature gets
widely opened up and every inch of surroundings gets all possible hues and
tints of flowers, decorative blooms like pink coloured Tulips(Maghoone , Magge
) , pink Geraniums ,yellow Winter Flax ( Basant , Phiyuli ) , golden Carrot
Sage ,Eremostachys superba (Gaajarmoola), white Butterfly Buddlejas , Langoor
Pear ,Pyrus pashia (Kainth ) ,brilliant blue Eranthemum pulchellum , Wild Musk
Rose , Rosa brunonii ( Kareer ) and golden yellow Caesalpinia bonduc (
Dudhrehda ) among plethora like variety of plants which marked various
significance in medicinal as well as in maintaining ecology and biodiversity at
these forests. . Decorative Indian Orchid Tree, Bauhinia variegata locally
called Katraid is followed by the attractive blooms of Flame Of The Forest in
the backdrop of Trikuta hills to add colour and charm to the surroundings.
Palash ,Butea monosperma but also beautiful blooms of Indian Laburnum ,Cassia
fistula ( Karangal , Amaltaas ) , Scarlet Flame Bush ( Dhaai ,Dhaataki ) ,
Gulmohar ,Delonix regia , Jacaranda mimosaefolia , Wendlandia heyneii (Pansar )
, Melia azederach ( Dhraink ) ,Sterculia pallens (Udaal ) and Ehretia serrata (
Pauna )monsoon herbs shrubs , trees and climbers . Leucas capitata ( ,Phumman ,
Dronpushpi ), Gloriosa superba ( Kalihaari , K ukkadsira ) , Strobilanthes
alatus ( Pardaah ) , Mimosa rubicaulis ( Raal ) , Ipomea purpurea ( Kharpowa ,
Ishaqpecha) , Martynia annua ( Bhiddu ,Kaun ) , Impatiens balsamina ( Teera
,Gulmehndi ) , Rabdosia rugosa ( Salaiee , Peeunmaar ) , Mirabilis jalapa (
Gulbaasi ) , Cestrum nocturnum (Raat ki Raani ) , Lagerstroemia indica (
Panjtaara ) ,Oroxylum indicum ( Taatra , Marinjan ), these trees, shurbs of
Trikuta Hills and Vaishno Devi Shrine are vital links in the forest ecology and
are a source of food for numerous bees , butterflies, birds and other wildlife
of the area . These vegetation are basis of future greenery and
important for providing multiple and indispensable ecological , cultural ,
economic services to the local communities of the area, Spoiling nature
and its manifestations in one or the other way is sure to attract wrath of our
sacred shrines and we need to look at nature with same reverence as we have for
our places of worship.
j.
That the proposed project is also
going to cause various health hazards to the residents of Katra, Panthal
as well as to around 10 million people from all over the world who visit the
historical and famous Shakti Peeth Sri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine.
k. That
the Respondent No. 1 on the one hand declared in its 6th National
meet on State Bio Diversity Board at Chandigarh that Shivalik Hills would be
notified as the country's first Inter-State Biosphere Reserve with the
setting up of a bio-diversity corridor there to protect its natural habitat,
flora and fauna and the States includes Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, Himachal
Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand and on the other side the
Respondents without any application of mind and without keeping due regards to
the sanctity of their own decisions are bent upon to destroy the areas which
are already declared as Protected Areas.
l. As per the research made by SKAWAHLOOK FIRST NATION (as reported in http://www.skawahlook.com/cogburn-magnesium-project.php)
a Canada Based Organization on
Cogburn Magnesium Project has find out that Magnesium has been
identified as a major source of Hazardous Air Pollutants including chlorine,
hydrochloric acid, Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) such as dioxins and
furans and trace amounts of Hazardous Air Polluting Metals including
phosphorous and manganese.
Prolonged human contacts with these substances have been demonstrated to
cause the following health problems:
·
Damage to the
liver, kidney, thyroid, endocrine Glands,
·
immune and nervous
systems.
·
Birth Defects
·
Cancer
·
Child Growth
Retardation
·
Stunted
intellectual function
·
Decreased survival
rates in children
·
Reduced levels of
male reproductive hormones
·
Diabetes
It is submitted that, in addition to the potential harm the
magnesite refining plant would have on our community, the proposed plant would
also alter the flow of natural water sources and also the problem of water
contamination, as the report said, is beyond control both by disposal of
contaminated water and by percolation. Both the contamination and alteration in
water flow would have a negative impact on the quality and quantity of water,
fish habitat, fish, fishery, wetland, wildlife habitat, wildlife. It is submitted that the respondents
without going through the impact of denotification as well as mining over the
endangered species, has acted in a very arbitrary and unreasonable manner. Even
the disposal of solid waste material amounting to about 14.23 Lac Ton per year,
as suggested by Respondent No. 6, is directly affecting the ecology of
surrounding areas.
ON
HISTORICAL ASPECT:
m. That Shri Mata Vaishno Devi temple is nearly assumed to be
million year old that was studied by geologists. It is not possible to predict
the exact age of the temple. Vaishno Devi temple is not mentioned in the Rig
Vedas, but mountain Trikoot is mentioned in the Vedas. The worshiping of Shakti
started in Puranic period. The first mention of Maa Shakti (Mahamaya Shakti – Supreme
Mother Power) is in Mahabharata. This was mentioned by Arjun when he prayed to
Mother Goddess on advise of Krishna he said
“Jambookatak Chityaishu Nityam Sannihitalaye”. This means prayer to Shakti who
resides in the mountains of Jamboo. Generally it is assumed that this is the
reference to Vaishno Devi temple, which is located in Jammu. May be, Jammu in old times was called as Jamboo.
It is also believed that Pandavas were the first to construct temple of Goddess adjacent to the Trikoot Mountain and the five stones inside
Vaishno Devi temple is said to be symbols of Five Pandavas. Oldest reference
for Vaishno Devi temple is when Guru Govind Singh goes there from Purmandal.
Purmandal is a pilgrimage center which has an old foot track for Vaishno Devi temple.
Vaishno Devi temple is believed to be
the place where skull of Sati fell. Some do believe that right arm of Sati fell
there and Vaishno Devi temple also have the stone shaped human hand called
as Varad Hast which means “the hand that gives blessings”.
According to Hindu philosophy, the goal of human life is the
realization of the state of peace. Dharma, loosely translated as religion, is
the source by which peace can be fully realized. This peace is not the
stillness of death; it is a dynamic harmony among all the diverse facets of
life. Humanity, as part of the natural world, can contribute through dharma to
this natural harmony
.
The natural harmony that should exist in the play of energies between
humanity and the natural world is now disrupted by the weakest player in the
game: humanity. Although it is the totality of this game that provides our
nourishment, through ignorance of our own natural limits we destroy this source
of nourishment.
This awareness of ecological play or playful ecology is inseparable from
awareness of the need for friendship and play as the real basis for human
relationship. The family within which these relationships are nourished is not
limited to its human members. Just as the human child has to be nourished by
Mother Nature, and the human spirit has to be embraced and loved by beautiful
nature, so the human being who has grown old or sick has to be supported by
caring nature. If humans distress the mother, rape the beauty, and beat the
caring nurse, what happens? The relationship collapses, and the family is
broken.
The Sanskrit for family is parivara, and environment is
paryavarana. If we think of the environment as our home and all of its members
as our family it is clear that the key to conserving nature is devotion,
love—giving and serving. Nature, prakriti, as the feminine can give and serve.
But the role of humanity, purusha, is then to protect. Nowadays purusha,
humanity, is interested not in protecting but in exploiting, so prakriti,
nature, has to defend herself. This is why we see nature in her furious
manifestation—in drought, floods, or hurricanes. On this ground also the
permission and all other clearances by respondents for operation of said
project is required to be quashed.
ON
ASPECT OF VIABILITY:
n. The
proposed project is not viable as far as necessity is concerned. The Annual
Director’s Report for the year 2009-10 as published by Respondent No. 6 in
website of Respondent no. 7 (www.nmdc.co.in)
reflects that there was negligible demand in the market for magnesite and due
to inadequate demand in the market, the Respondent no. 6 was on the verge of
closure. However in the Annual report for the year 2010-11, it was stated that
the demand for Magnesite has increased. The demand as such expressed by
Respondent no. 6 is unwarranted and uncalled for taking into consideration the
percentage of deposit in J&K Viz a Viz Rest of India. It is submitted that
the report published by Indian Bureau of Mines in its website (www.ibm.nic.in)
has clearly stated that out of total expected reserves of magnesite in
all over India,
J&K has only 0.2% of magnesite deposit. It is submitted that the
rise in demand which has been projected by Respondent n. 6 in its Annual Report
for the years 2010-11can be supplied from the reserves which are already
available in abundance in Various other states of India. Copy of relevant
extracts of Annual Directors Report for the year 2010-2011 are enclosed
herewith as ANNEXURE-H collectively and the copy of Report of Indian
Bureau of Mines regarding percentage share of deposits of Magnesite throughout India is
enclosed herewith as ANNEXURE-J.
It is submitted that the state of J&K in order to meet out the demand of
Dead Burnt Magnesium can enter into various MoUs with States having abundance
of Magnesite and thereby can protect flora and fauna as well as the sanctity of
Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine.
The initiation of the project which is although not viable can surely cause
damage to Pilgrimage Tourism and thereby also cause damage to major source of
economy of State of J&K to a large extent.
It
is further submitted that in the Year 2011 more than 10 million pilgrims
visited Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine and these pilgrims were not only
attracted to the Holy Shrine but also to the flora and fauna of the
surroundings which are still in its bloom due to existence of ecological
balance maintained by Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary and any disturbance and
interference caused by any act in furtherance to the mining will certainly
collapse the balance and ultimately shall affect the pilgrimage and then the
economy of State.
15.That the
petitioners state that the petitioners have not moved any other application on
the same cause of action before the Hon’ble Court or any other court of law.
16.That the
petitioners state that it is apparent that gross illegality has been
committed by respondents and they failed to look after the legal,
environmental, religious, sentimental, social and economical aspects before
forwarding nod to the project of mining and setting up of DBM Plant in the
vicinity of Trikuta wild Life sanctuary as well as Trikuta hills.
17.That the
petitioners have no other efficacious and alternative remedy.
18.That as
indicated hereinabove, the petitioners are moving this petition in public good
to protect the public interest and not intended to serve any interest of any
individual and in case the orders, as prayed for hereunder, are not granted
against the respondents, ultimately the public at large would suffer
irreparable loss and injury. The petitioners are filing the present
petition on their own and not at the instance of someone else. And the
litigation costs have been borne out by the petitioner themselves.
19.That this
petition is being moved bona fide and in the interest of justice.
20.That the
petitioners have not filed any other PIL petition.
Affidavit in support of Public Interest
Litigation petition is enclosed.
IN THE
PREMISES
It is, therefore,
most respectfully prayed before this Hon’ble
Court that in view of the submissions made herein
above, and those to be urged at the time of hearing your Lordship may be
pleased to allow the present writ petition and issue the appropriate writ order
or direction in the nature of :
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside the order in pursuance of letter dated 3rd May 2011
issued by Respondent No.1 granting environmental clearance to Project No.
F.No.J-11011/348/2009-IA II(I) in favour of Respondent No.6;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 4 and
2 in pursuance of recommendations made by Standing Committee of
Respondent No. 4 in its 22nd meeting held on 25th April
2011 wherein recommendations for denotification of Trikuta Wild Life sanctuary
was made;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 4 and
2 in pursuance of recommendations made by Standing Committee of
Respondent No. 4 in its 23nd meeting held on 14 Oct 2011 wherein
permission to extract 1240000 TPA High Grade Magnasite Deposit at Chipprian
Hills and setting up of 30000 TPA of dead burnt Magnesia Plant at Village
Panthal, Katra Reasi was granted in favour of Respondent No. 6 ;
CERTIORARI
thereby quashing and setting aside orders passed by Respondent No. 5 & 8
wherein recommendations were made denotification of Trikuta Wild Life sanctuary
and recommendations to extract 1240000 TPA High Grade Magnasite Diposit at
Chipprian Hills and setting up of 30000 TPA of dead burnt Magnesia Plant at
Village Panthal, Katra Reasi were made;
MANDAMUS
directing Respondent No.9 to not to alienate the land held and owned by it in
violation to the provisions of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act,1988.
Such
other additional or alternative relief, which this Hon’ble Court may in the
facts and circumstances of the case deem fit and proper, be also passed in
favour of the petitioner.
PETITIONERS
Vilakshana Singh
Dewakar Sharma
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF: -
AFFIDAVIT
IN SUPPORT OF WRIT PETITION
I, Vilakshana
Singh , Age 32 years, S/o Late Sh. Jagdish Singh Dogra R/o Sidhra By
Pass, Jammu, Advocate J&K High Court, Jammu do hereby solemnly affirm and
declare that I have read the petition and the contents of paras 1 to 2 and from
para 15 to 20 are true to my personal knowledge which I believe to be true and
those paras 3 to 14 are true from information received from records which I
believe to be true.
I solemnly swear and
affirm that this affidavit is true, no part of this is false and nothing has
been concealed.
DEPONENT
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF: -
AFFIDAVIT
IN SUPPORT OF CMP
I, Vilakshana
Singh , Age 32 years, S/o Late Sh. Jagdish Singh Dogra R/o Sidhra By
Pass, Jammu, Advocate J&K High Court, Jammu do hereby solemnly affirm and
declare that I have read the petition and the contents of paras made in the CMP
are true to my personal knowledge which I believe to be true and are true from information received from
records which I believe to be true.
I solemnly swear and
affirm that this affidavit is true, no part of this is false and nothing has
been concealed.
DEPONENT
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF: -
AFFIDAVIT
IN SUPPORT OF WRIT PETITION
I, Dewakar
Sharma , Age 35 years, S/o Sh.
Dharam Parkash Sharma R/o 29, Vinayak Bazar, Jammu, Advocate J&K High
Court, Jammu do hereby solemnly affirm and declare that I have read the
petition and the contents of paras 1 to 2 and from para 15 to 20 are true to my
personal knowledge which I believe to be true and those paras 3 to 14 are true
from information received from records which I believe to be true.
I solemnly swear and
affirm that this affidavit is true, no part of this is false and nothing has
been concealed.
DEPONENT
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF: -
AFFIDAVIT
IN SUPPORT OF CMP
I, Dewakar
Sharma , Age 35 years, S/o Sh.
Dharam Parkash Sharma R/o 29, Vinayak Bazar, Jammu, Advocate J&K High Court,
Jammu do hereby solemnly affirm and declare that I have read the petition and the
contents of paras made in the CMP are true to my personal knowledge which I
believe to be true and are true from
information received from records which I believe to be true.
I solemnly swear and
affirm that this affidavit is true, no part of this is false and nothing has
been concealed.
DEPONENT
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
CMP
NO:…………/2012
Vilakshana Singh
& another V/S Union of India
& ors
IN
THE MATTER OF:-
CMP for interim relief.
MAY IT PLEASE
YOUR LORDSHIPS:
The
humble petitioners most respectfully submit as under:-
1. That
the petitioners have filed the above titled writ petition before this Hon’ble Court which
is sure to succeed on merits.
2. That
the petitioners have made out a strong prima-facie case in their favour.
3. That
the balance of convenience is also in favour of the petitioner and against the
Respondents.
4. That
in order to avoid repetition, the petitioners humbly submit that the grounds of
the writ petition be also treated as part of this petition to meet the ends of
justice.
5. That
in case the relief prayed in the CMP is not granted to the petitioners, the
petitioners and the public at large including the devotees of Sh. Mata Vaishno
Devi, maintenance in ecological balance of the area, the flora and fauna, the
endangered species of plants, animals, herbs etc. shall suffer an irreparable
loss and harm which will not be compensated later on by any mode.
An
affidavit in support of this CMP is annexed herewith.
It
is, therefore, most humbly prayed that pending disposal of the accompanying
writ petition, your Lordship may be pleased to call the whole of the records
pertaining to:-
(i)
Environmental Clearance given by
respondent no.1 to Panthal Magnesite Project No. F.No.J-11011/348/2009-IA II(I)
in favour of respondent no.6
(ii)
Denotification as well as
recommendations of denotification of Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary.
(iii)
Clearance by
respondent no.4 to Panthal Magnesite Project No. F.No.J-11011/348/2009-IA II(I)
(iv)
Record
of Public Hearing, if any, held for the purposes of granting Environmental Clearance to the Panthal Magnesite
Project No. F.No.J-11011/348/2009-IA II(I)
It is further prayed that during the
pendency of the main writ petition, Hon’ble
Court may kindly be pleased to:-
(i)
direct
the respondent no.2 to keep the order of denotification of Trikuta Wild
Sanctuary in abeyance.
(ii)
direct
the Respondent nos. 2, 4 and 6 not to carry any mining or other activity in the
mine lease area in the vicinity of Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary and Shri Mata
Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
(iii)
direct the respondent no.9 not to alienate land held by it in violation
of provisions of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board Act. ( relief as equally sought in main writ
petition will bind the court to not to issue any directions..)
Any
other relief which your Lordship may deem just and proper in the circumstances
of the case may also be granted in favour of the petitioner.
PETITIONERS
Vilakshan Singh
Dewakar Sharma
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF:-
BRIEF FACTS
That the petitioners are
Advocates and are practicing in High Court of J&K. Apart from providing
legal services to needy and poor persons, the petitioners have also contributed
themselves in various social and environmental causes. As active members of the
various organizations the petitioners have contributed a lot into anti-corruption
activities, Human Right activities through Amenesty International etc. The
present writ petition has been filed against denotification of protected wildlife sanctuary named Trikuta Wild Life Sanctuary in order to
justify legality of proposed Mining without
adhering to the Provisions of J&K Wild Life Protection Act and also
without adhering to the various Supreme Court Guidelines. Further, the said proposed mining is being carried
out illegally in the land exclusively owned by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine
Board and the said board has expressed in the reply to RTI filed by
Petitioner that they have not alienated any land belongs to SMVDSB for the purpose of
mining or ever permitted to carry out mining against any provisions of SMVDSB
Act. Apart from these, the petitioners are also challenging the
proposed mining on the grounds of Environmental,
Public Heath, Historical and Necessity/Viabilty of the said project. The
petitioners have placed on the record various reports submitted by Respondents
time to time, researches, expert opinions etc so as to strengthen their
arguments. The petitioner has filed this writ petition also in the nature of
mandamus upon the respondents commanding
them to forbear from changing or disturbing the environment and ecological
pattern of land in respect of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary and Trikuta Hills situated
in Katra for the ostensible purpose of extracting Magnasite and setting up of
plant of Dead Burnt Magnasite at Chipprian Hills, Chandwan and Panthal Village
in district Reasi of Jammu Region at the instance of respondents or for any
other purpose which shall cause disturbance of ecology and environment.
Hence the Present Writ Petition.
PETITIONERS
Vilakshan Singh
Dewakar Sharma
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF:- INDEX
S. No.
|
PARTCULARS
|
|
PAGE NO.
|
1.
|
Public
Interest Litigation(Petition)
|
|
|
2.
|
Affidavits
in support of PIL(P).
|
|
|
3.
|
Annexure
A
|
Copy
of letter of Respondent no. 1 Granting environmental Clearance to the Project
|
|
4.
|
Annexure
B
|
Copy
extracts of the minutes of 22nd meeting standing committee of
respondent no. 4
|
|
5.
|
Annexure
C
|
Copy
of the said proposal of Panthal Magnesite Project.
|
|
.
6
|
Annexure
D
|
Copy
the
extracts of minutes of the 23rd meeting of Standing Committee of
NBWL
|
|
7.
|
Annexure
E
|
Copy
of application under RTI Act
|
|
8.
|
Annexure
F
|
Copy
of information supplied under RTI Act.
|
|
9.
|
Annexure
G
|
Copy
of Director’s Report published by Respondent No. 6 on the web site of Respondent
No. 7 for the year 2009-2010
|
|
10.
|
Annexure
H
|
Copy
of relevant extracts of Annual Directors Report for the year 2010-2011
|
|
11.
|
Annexure
J
|
Copy
of Report of Indian Bureau of Mines regarding percentage share of deposits of
Magnesite
|
|
12.
|
CMP.
|
|
|
13.
|
Affidavits
in Support of CMP
|
|
|
Filed by PETITIONERS
Vilakshana Singh
Dewakar Sharma
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF:-
Memo of urgency.
MAY IT PLEASE
YOUR LORDSHIPS,
The
petitioners/applicants above named respectfully submit as under:-
1. That
the petitioners have filed the above titled PILpetition in this Hon’ble Court
which has sure chances of success on its merits. The petitioners have also
filed an application for grant of interim relief.
2. That
the matter involved in the PIL petition as also in the
application for grant of interim relief is of emergent
nature and in case the Public Interest Petition petition alongwith
application for interim relief is not taken up for
consideration at an earliest, the very purpose of filing the petition
shall become in-fructuous and the public in General as well as the
environment, ecological balance of Katra and Trikuta Forests shall suffer
an irreparable loss and injury.
In view of the
submissions made hereinabove, it is, therefore, prayed that the writ petition
along with application for interim relief may kindly be taken up
for consideration at an earliest in the interest of the
justice.
PETITIONERS
Vilakshana Singh
Dewakar Sharma
IN
THE HON’BLE HIGH COURT OF JAMMU AND KASHMIR AT JAMMU
Vilakshana Singh & another V/S Union of India & ors
IN THE MATTER
OF:-
Affidavit in support of PIL Petition
We,
Vilakshana Singh, Age 32 years, S/o Late Sh. Jagdish Singh Dogra
R/o Sidhra By Pass, Jammu, AND Dewakar Sharma , Age 35 years,
S/o Sh. Dharam Parkash Sharma R/o 29,
Vinayak Bazar, Jammu Advocates J&K High Court, Jammu do hereby solemnly
affirm and state on oath
1.
That the present writ petition has
been filed against denotification of
protected wildlife sanctuary named Trikuta
Wild Life Sanctuary. The respondents
in order to justify legality of proposed Mining without adhering to the Provisions of J&K Wild Life Protection Act
and also without adhering to the various Supreme Court Guidelines have first
entirely denotified the said Wild Life Sanctuary. Further, the said proposed mining is being carried out illegally in the land
exclusively owned by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board and the said board
has expressed in the reply to RTI filed by Petitioner that they have not alienated any land that
belongs to SMVDSB for the purpose of mining or ever permitted to carry out
mining against any provisions of SMVDSB Act. Apart from these, the
petitioners are also challenging the proposed mining on the grounds of Environmental, Public Heath, Historical and
Necessity/Viabilty of the said project. The petitioners have placed on the
record various reports submitted by Respondents time to time, researches,
expert opinions etc so as to strengthen their arguments. The petitioners have
filed this writ petition also in the nature of mandamus upon the respondents commanding them to
forbear from changing or disturbing the environment and ecological pattern of
land in respect of Trikuta Wildlife Sanctuary and Trikuta Hills situated in
Katra for the ostensible purpose of extracting Magnasite and setting up of
plant of Dead Burnt Magnesite at Chipprian Hills, Chandwan and Panthal Village
in district Reasi of Jammu Region at the instance of respondents or for any
other purpose which shall cause
disturbance of ecology and environment.
2.
That the petitioners submit that all
possible efforts have been made to gather the material required for proper and
comprehensive adjudication of the issues raised. The information gathered by
the petitioners in support to the cause of action raised in the petition is by
virtue of various modes i.e RTI application, expert opinion published on
internet and various reports and orders published by respondents time to time
on their official websites.
3.
That the petitioners herein have no personal interest
in the subject matter of this petition. The petitioners hereby undertake to pay
exemplary costs and/or compensatory damages as directed by this Court in the
event of a contrary finding upon adjudication by the Court that the writ
petition is filed for extraneous/personal considerations or with oblique
motive.
DEPONENT/PETITIONERS
, NEW DELHI
Raman Sharma is a dedicated Jammu based RTI activist and journalist . With a focus on transparency and accountability, with his writing he has contributed for various credible newspapers and magazines in the region. He is amongst the first few batches who completed Certificate Course in RTI from the Centre for Good Governance in Hyderabad, in collaboration with the Government of India.
Sharma is actively involved in education and advocacy, having delivered guest lectures on RTI , Good Governance at different universities and educational institutions to empower students. Additionally, in collaboration with the JK Institute of Management and Public Administration (JK IMPA), he has also remained resource person in training programs for District Officers, Public Information Officers, Ministerial staff of different departments, promoting awareness and effective implementation of RTI/PSGA . In association with the CHRI he also remained instrumental in training for civil society members on the Transparency Law.
