The Prakruti Mandal is an NGO working on environmental issues. Gujarat Gas, Gail, GSPC, Adani, Sabarmati Gas, Charotar Gas and Hindustan Petroleum have been made the respondents in the PIL.
A division bench of the Gujarat high court headed by chief justice SJ Mukhopadhya has issued notices to the Union government, the state government and natural gas distributer companies while hearing a PIL seeking larger quota of cheap natural gas for Gujarat.
The PIL has been filed by Dhrangadhra Prakruti Mandal through its vice-president Devjibhai Dhamecha.
The Prakruti Mandal is an NGO working on environmental issues. Gujarat Gas, Gail, GSPC, Adani, Sabarmati Gas, Charotar Gas and Hindustan Petroleum have been made the respondents in the PIL.
Amit Panchal, counsel for the petitioner, argued before the court that the Union government should provide natural gas to Gujarat at the same rate at which it is being supplied to Delhi and Mumbai.
The two metropolises are supplied natural gas at administered price mechanism (APM) rates meant for city gas distribution (CGD) projects; natural gas supplied at these rates is much cheaper.
The petitioner has also stated that the union government should increase the natural gas quota for Gujarat to reduce pollution level in the city.
The petitioner has also stated that the union government should increase the natural gas quota for Gujarat to reduce pollution level in the city.
In this connection, the petition has cited the Apex court order that had asked state governments to take steps to ensure reduction in pollution caused by petrol-using vehicles.
Giving the example of Mumbai and Delhi, the petition states that cheap natural gas supplied to the two metropolises by the Union government took care of over 90% of the demand for CNG and of the domestic segment.
In contrast, Gujarat has been allocated less than 0.5 MMSCMD of low priced domestic gas for CGD projects. This caters to less than 40% of the demand for CNG and of the domestic segment, the PIL states.
Most Gujarat cities, therefore, have to use imported natural gas which is far more expensive than the gas supplied to Mumbai and Delhi at ATM rates meant for CGD projects.
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