Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (SP)

Mangaluru, Feb 7: The National Green Tribunal has questioned the petitioners about the reasons for their opposition to a drinking water project like Yettinahole. It also took the petitioners to task for raising the points that had already been addressed in the earlier order of the Chennai bench of the green tribunal.

The tribunal led by Justice Swatanter Kumar which took up hearing of the case on Monday February 6 expressed unhappiness at the fact that Ritwik Dutta and Prince Issac, advocates representing petitioners, K N Somashekhar and Kihsore Kumar, have not been conforming to the discipline of the judiciary. The tribunal adjounrned hearing of the case to Tuesday February 7, duly asking the petitioners to convince the tribunal on Tuesday as to whether the order passed by the union forest and environment department in March 2013, duly keeping drinking water projects outside the purview of the obtaining environmental clearance, has statutory sanction.

Advocates for petitioners in their arguments, clarified that they have no objections to drinking water projects, but that their objections are aimed mainly at the fact that all legal norms have been thrown to the winds when executing this project. They pointed out that study of environmental impact of the project has never been undertaken in this case and that the Western Ghats, which are biologically sensitive and source of water for the entire region, are being damaged. They said that there is no clarity on the actual cost of the project and benefits derived out of it, and there is basis for the claim that the project will be able to generate 24 tmc of water. At the same time, environment and bio diversity will suffer extensive damage, they stated.

When their clarification was sought, advocates for the state, Naveen Nath and Ashok Devaraj, admitted that the draft project report had these defects but the revised project report has clearly stated that this project is meant to meet drinking water requirement.