PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa has disposed petitions seeking a stay on the public hearings scheduled on March 7 for finalisation of the draft Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP). The bench comprising Justice M S Sonak and Justice Bharati Dangre instead recommended that the petitioners approach the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
“If the provisions of NGT Act, 2010 are perused, then, the issues raised by the petitioners in the present petition, can very well be gone into by the NGT itself. Since the petitioners have alternate and efficacious remedy available to them, it would not be appropriate for us to exercise our extraordinary jurisdiction particularly in a case where the NGT is virtually seized of this matter,” the bench observed as it pronounced the order on Tuesday.
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“Therefore,” the court further said, “without going into the merits of issues raised and leaving open all contentions of all parties, we dispose of this petition by granting liberty to the petitioners to take out appropriate proceedings before the NGT.”
Traditional Fishermen Association and Goenchea Raponkarancho Ekvott had approached the high court seeking an order or direction to quash and set aside the public hearings. The petitioners also sought to stay the public hearings at Margao and Caranzalem till the time new dates, places and times of public hearings are notified afresh and that directions be issued to the government to first explain the CZMPs to the people at the panchayat level, before going ahead with the hearings.
During the hearing, Advocate General Devidas Pangam submitted that the issue of preparation of CZMP is being continuously monitored by the NGT. “It is in pursuance of and in compliance with the orders made by the Tribunal time-to-time, steps are being taken to finalise the plan. One of the steps is the public hearing, for which, the notification dated January 28, 2021 was issued,” he said.
Advocate Maria Caroline Collasso, appearing for the petitioners urged the court to postpone the public hearings to another date as time is too short to institute proceedings before the NGT. “Even the NGT has never said that public hearing should not be in accordance with law and the provisions of Environment Protection Act and the Rules made thereunder. There is a breach of the Environment Protect Act rules and breach of CRZ notification as well; and all these issues may be considered by this Court itself,” she added.
In its order, the division bench observed that as per records NGT has been constantly monitoring the issue of preparation of CZMP in Goa and that the affidavit filed on behalf of the respondents indicate that in terms of the latest directions of the NGT, the CZMP is to be finalised by the end of January, 2021. “Since, the NGT is entirely seized with this issue of finalisation of CZMP, we feel that it will not be appropriate for us to entertain the present petition. Rather, it would be appropriate that the petitioners are relegated to avail the remedy before the NGT,” the court noted before disposing of the petitions.
