Source: The Sangai Express
Imphal, December 19:
Barely three days after Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde laid the foundation stone of the controversial Tipaimukh Multipurpose Project, a Division Bench of the Gauhati High Court has issued notices to the State Govt on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed against what it terms as the illegal Public Hearing on the project conducted at Tamenglong.
Justices TN Singh and Agarwal issued the notices in their Imphal Bench sitting yesterday making it returnable within four weeks following a PIL filed by co-ordinator of Centre for Organisation Research and Education (CORE) and social activist Aram Pamei of Tamenglong Ward no..7The PIL contended that the 'so-called' proceedings of the public hearing conducted on November 22 at Tamenglong district headquarters is 'selfexplanatory on the question of manipulating the proceeding itself and also on the illegality and incompetency' on it.
It said the people of Tamenglong district who had come to participate in the public hearing were not allowed to enter the DC office complex by the security personnel.
The action of the respondents to foil the entry of people is against the commitment made in the notification issued on October 17 in connection with holding the public hearing, the PIL contended.
It also alleged that the local populace of Tamenglong were never given notice of the public hearing in the manner prescribed by the law.
The notice was never published in any vernacular language of Tamenglong people as required.
Hence the public hearing has been manipulated or otherwise mismanaged and the same is mala fide, arbitrary and it cannot be acted upon for the purpose of obtaining the requisite environmental clearance from the Manipur Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the PIL alleged.
It prayed before the Court to issue rule against the respondents to show cause as to why the public hearing's proceedings should not be quashed and initiated an environmental public hearing afresh in accordance to the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment notification dated January 27, 1994.Any further process for construction of the project should be stayed until the final disposal of the writ petition, the PIL also prayed.
The listed respondents of the PIL include Union of India represented by Ministry of Environment and Forest, NEEPCO and State Government represented by Commissioner/Secretary (Power), MPCB and Deputy Commissioner of Tamenglong district.
Advocate Kh Chonjohn appeared on behalf of the PIL petitioners.
Another bench of the same Court had already taken up for hearing another PIL filed against the conduct of public hearing held at Churachandpur on the same issue.