Goan miner told to push basalt back into Maharashtra site

Panaji: A Goan miner’s request to transport his already extracted material from a Maharashtra site — later marked as ecologically sensitive in a non-finalized draft — has been rejected by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). In fact, the NGT has directed the North Goa resident to place the mined material back to the place from which it was excavated. It has also ordered him to restore the land to its original state within two months.
The Goan was carrying out small-scale basalt stone quarrying in Devage village in Sawantwadi, Maharashtra. The village falls within an ecologically sensitive area of the Western Ghats, according to a draft notification.
“We do not deem it appropriate to allow this prayer of the appellant, rather we direct the appellant to put back the mined material in the area from where it has been excavated so that the said area is restored to its original position within a period of two months,” the NGT said. “Maharashtra Pollution Control Board shall ensure that the said direction is complied with. MPCB shall also submit its report in this regard before this tribunal within a period of one month.”
The miner had approached the tribunal stating that he is the lessee of a pre-existing small-scale basalt quarry spread over an area of 4.5 hectares. He said the quarry was operational from 2009 to September 2012. He said that the Sindhudurg collector kept his application for extension of lease pending because of a moratorium imposed by the Union environment ministry.
The moratorium, said the miner, was later lifted but the collector still kept the application on hold because Devage had fallen into an eco-sensitive area after the draft was released. The miner said the Maharashtra State Environment Assessment Committee had disposed of his application without giving him a hearing.
The miner’s contention was that the announcement pertaining to the eco-sensitive area in the Western Ghats is a draft notification, which has not yet been finalised. He said that the Government of Maharashtra had in a letter dated December 5, 2018, recommended that Devage be removed from the list of eco-sensitive sites of the Western Ghats.
“It has resulted in tremendous financial loss to the appellant as the appellant had taken loans from various banks and financial institutions for the project,” the tribunal was told.
However, the NGT did not accept the arguments.
“Since the draft notification has been prepared based on expert study, till the finalization of the same, we can take assistance of it, as regards holding the area in question to be an eco-sensitive area of Western Ghats where no mining activity may be permitted,” the NGT said.
The Goan was carrying out small-scale basalt stone quarrying in Devage village in Sawantwadi. The village falls within an ecologically sensitive area of the Western Ghats, according to a draft notification. The miner’s contention was that the announcement is a draft notification, which has not yet been finalised