A six-member special bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) Monday disposed of challenges to the Great Nicobar mega infrastructure project and concluded that it found “no good ground to interfere,” as there were “adequate safeguards” in the project’s environmental clearance (EC). The bench also noted the “importance of the project, especially the strategic importance of the project,” and the issues were dealt with by a high-powered committee, which was earlier tasked by the Tribunal to revisit the project’s environmental clearance.
While disposing of the batch of petitions, it directed “full and strict compliance with the EC conditions” by authorities and regulatory agencies. NGT chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava pronounced the brief operative part of the order. “We have come to the conclusion, that we find that adequate safeguards have been provided in the EC conditions and in the first case of litigation the Tribunal had refused to interfere in the EC and remaining issues noted by the Tribunal in the first round of litigation have been dealt with by the high-powered committee, and considering the strategic importance of the project, taking into account the other relevant considerations, we do not find any good ground to interfere accordingly OA and MA are disposed off with a direction to authorities and regulatory agencies, full and strict compliance of the EC conditions,” the NGT chairperson said, reading out the operative part of the order.