The SC passed the order while hearing the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority's (MMRDA) appeal against a National Green Tribunal order from 2016 which slapped a Rs 25-lakh fine on it for causing environmental degradation.
The Supreme Court has rebuked the state government for letting the Mithi, one of the state's oldest rivers whose contamination contributed to the 2005 deluge in the city, turn into a garbage-strewn drain. Saying that no effective steps appear to have been taken by anybody in the government to restore the river even more than a decade after the flood brought Mumbai down to its knees, the top court asked the Maharashtra government to deposit Rs 50 lakh with it for instituting an expert committee to salvage the river.
The joint committee, to be convened additional chief secretary Satish Gawai, will comprise environmentalists from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B) and the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI). The panel is expected to submit within three months a report on the damage caused to the river and suggest remedial measures.
In its order dated August 16, a division bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said, "These appeals arise out of the floods in Mumbai on July 26, 2005. We have been informed that as a result of the floods more than 1,000 people had died and thousands had fallen ill. Notwithstanding this tragedy of enormous proportions, no effective steps appear to have been taken by anybody in the state government of Maharashtra including some of the statutory authorities to remedy the situation in spite of the fact that a little more than 12 years have gone by."
The order further stated, "The joint team will give us factual report on what has transpired so far, what is the extent of the damage to Mithi River, what steps can be taken to remedy the damage and the short term and long-term future course of action. We request the concerned Directors [of the institutes] to nominate experts to the team who are in a position to co-ordinate with each other and give us a report within three months."
The SC passed the order while hearing the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority's (MMRDA) appeal against a National Green Tribunal order from 2016 which slapped a Rs 25-lakh fine on it for causing environmental degradation.
The NGT imposed the fine after Jalbiradari and Vanashakti NGOs filed a petition against MMRDA, challenging the coastal regulation zone (CRZ) clearance granted to it for constructing retaining walls as well as for destroying mangroves around Mithi River.
Stalin Dayanand of Vanshakti NGO said he was happy that the SC had taken a resolute step and rapped the state. "The order was passed after MMRDA challenged the NGT's order to avoid paying the fine of Rs 25 lakh. The state government will be exposed when the report is submitted to the SC in the next three months."
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