The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked Graphite India Ltd. (GIL) to inform by October 29 how much it is willing to pay under the ‘polluter pays principle’ for its Whitefield plant in Bengaluru.
A bench of Justices Madan B. Lokur and Deepak Gupta passed the order even as GIL, represented by senior advocate Shyam Divan, submitted that the plant would be shut down by November-end.
The court further pulled up the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board for “doing nothing” to curb pollution in Bengaluru even as the city was grappling with the problem.
“Have you been to Bengaluru? There is so much pollution there. What is the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board doing? You are just wasting Bengaluru city,” Justice Lokur said.
Mr. Divan referred to a notice issued by the apex court for an explanation as to why use of petroleum coke (pet coke) should not be stopped at the plant.
“There is a report of the EPCA (Environment Pollution Control Authority). We had issued notice to you. Your stand today is that you are not causing pollution. So we will hear you,” the bench told Mr. Divan.
Mr. Divan said he would take instructions on how much his client would pay as per ‘polluter pays principle’.
Shot in the arm for Whitefield residents
Amid legalese, graphs showing pollution spikes and inspection reports, a few soot-covered leaves from eucalyptus trees in Whitefield played a key role in the arguments that led to the Supreme Court citing the “polluter pays” principle for Graphite India.
For residents of Whitefield, who have been engaged in a protracted legal battle against Graphite India, the Supreme Court ruling is a shot in the arm in their hope to breathe easy. Among the evidence presented by their advocate, Srinivas Kotni, were soot-covered leaves from the vicinity of the factory as proof of the carbon dust that has enveloped the area.
In a statement, Whitefield Rising, a citizens’ collective, said the court has recognised the “plight” of residents who have been “suffering” for 20 years. “...it is an embarrassment that they (Graphite India) have never acknowledged or addressed the concerns of the residents. Graphite India cannot correct in three months what it could not fix for over 40 years. In fact, such factories have been shut down in places like China for the reason that pollution from them is inevitable,” said the group.
They hope that the case concludes in their favour and “sets a standard” for polluting industries. “The best outcome for us would be to see departments like KSPCB doing their job. If they did, then we would not have needed to have this situation at all in the first place,” said the citizens’ group.
Murmurs of discontent against the plant, which has been in operation since 1970, had gathered steam in the past two decades. Apart from complaints to the KSPCB, a case had been filed with the National Green Tribunal. However, the plant continued to operate.
The break, however, came when the Supreme Court was hearing the issue of needle petroleum (pet) coke and its contribution to air pollution. The Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) tabulated the pollution in Whitefield in a report, which was taken into consideration by the Supreme Court earlier this year. Residents impleaded to the case.
“Graphite India has to indicate how much they will pay for past pollution, and we will focus on fugitive emissions (which escape from the sheds) apart from stack pollution (emissions directed out of chimneys). Till now, they had denied most forms of emissions, but the EPCA report and experiences from the ground has made it clear,” said Mr. Kotni.
While Graphite India has said their factories will close by November-end, Mr. Kotni said they will press for an independent, high-level commission to monitor the emissions if it eventually reopens. “(However) Full closure is the only solution as industries such as this, whose emissions can affect over generations, cannot be around dense habitations,” he said.
