ISBT petrol pump row: NGT sets up panel to check site

The National Green Tribunal has taken up an environmental plea challenging the alleged construction of a new petrol pump over or close to a drain and its buffer zone within the ISBT campus in Bhopal, and has constituted a joint committee to verify the ground situation.

The matter came up for hearing on Monday before a bench comprising judicial member Justice Sheo Kumar Singh and expert member Sudhir Kumar Chaturvedi. The application, filed by Prabhat Pandey, has alleged that the proposed petrol pump or retail outlet is being developed either over a marked drain or natural drainage channel, or within the prescribed buffer zone around it.

The petitioner has relied on Central Pollution Control Board guidelines dated January 7, 2020, and referred to an earlier matter dated August 16, 2021, while arguing that new fuel stations are required to maintain prescribed distances from water bodies, wetlands, canals and similar environmentally sensitive features.

The application has also alleged violation of provisions under the Madhya Pradesh Bhumi Vikas Rules, 2012, relating to the siting of fuel filling stations and protection of water bodies and drainage channels.

The tribunal, however, has not yet decided the merits of these allegations. At this stage, it has only recorded that the application raises a substantial environmental question requiring examination.

Following the preliminary hearing, the NGT directed issuance of notices to the respondents and asked them to file their replies within four weeks through the tribunal’s e-filing portal.

To ascertain the factual position, the tribunal also constituted a joint committee comprising representatives of the Central Pollution Control Board, the district Collector and the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board.

The committee has been directed to inspect the site, examine the alleged construction, assess compliance with applicable environmental norms and submit a report within four weeks. The panel is also expected to place before the tribunal details of any action already taken by the authorities in connection with the project.

The case concerns the proposed petrol pump inside the ISBT campus and the larger question of whether its location is compatible with environmental safeguards governing natural drainage channels and nearby water-related features. The tribunal’s directions are significant as they will bring an independent site assessment on record before further adjudication. The next hearing in the matter has been scheduled for October 13.