'Subject to deposit of Rs 25 crore': SC stays Rs 100 crore penalty in Avulapalli reservoir project

New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) The Supreme Court has stayed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) order, which imposed a penalty of Rs 100 crore on Andhra Pradesh in connection with the environmental clearance for the Avulapalli reservoir project in violation of environmental norms.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and M.M. Sundresh said: "Issue notice, returnable in the month of October 2023... In the meanwhile, there will be stay of the direction given in the impugned judgment with regard to penalty/compensation, subject to the appellants depositing an amount of Rs 25,00,00,000 (Rs twenty five crore only) with the authorities within a period of eight weeks from today. The deposit will be subject to the outcome of the present appeal."

The apex court order came on a plea by the Andhra Pradesh government challenging the NGT order, setting aside the environmental clearance (EC) granted to the Avulapalli reservoir.

The state government said it is constrained to file the present civil appeal against the judgment dated May 11, passed by the National Green Tribunal (south zone) reprimanding the government for the alleged misrepresentations in its application for and obtaining the EC for the Avulappali Balancing Reservoir (ABR) in Chittoor.

The NGT found that the while the eventual/proposed final water storage capacity of the project was 3.5 TMC, Andhra Pradesh deliberately applied for and obtained an EC authorising a water storage capacity of 2.5 TMC with a culturable command area of 9,700 Ha., only for the purpose of misleading respondent No 15, the State Level Environment Impact Assessment Authority of Andhra Pradesh (SEIAA).

The state government's plea, filed through advocate Mahfooz Nazki, said: "It is most respectfully submitted that the said finding is completely misconceived. It was nobody's case that any storage capacity in excess of 2.5 TMC is being utilised for the ABR Project, or any constructions in excess of the culturable command area more than 9,700 Ha. Is being undertaken."

The NGT passed the order on a plea filed by farmers challenging the environmental clearance granted by the SEIAA and also imposed a penalty of Rs 100 crore on Andhra Pradesh payable to the Krishna River Management Board within three months.

The state government, in its plea against NGT order, said: "The NGT has grossly erred in warrantlessly presuming that the project proponents actively and malafidely intend to violate the EC conditions and carry on with construction beyond 9,700 Ha and capacity of 2.5 TMC. As and when the stage is reached that Phase II of the ABR Project will be implemented, the Project Proponent will of course obviously apply for an EC for the same. To pre-emptively assume otherwise and stall the ABR Project and impose a heavy penalty of INR 100 Crores is completely unsustainable."