M/S Mansuri Cotton Industry v. The Pollution Control Board and 4 Ors

ORDER

04.10.2023

Heard Mr. B. Chakravarty, learned counsel for the petitioner; Mr. S. Baruah, learned Standing Counsel, Pollution Control Board, Assam for the respondent nos. 1 – 3; and Mr. K. Gogoi, learned Additional Senior Government Advocate, Assam for the respondent nos. 4 & 5.

¶2The petitioner was running a Waste Cloth Processing Industry in the name and style of 'Mansuri Cotton Industry' ['the Industry', for short] located in Dhekiajuli. According to the petitioner, he has obtained all the necessary permissions/licenses/no objection certificate, etc. from the competent authorities. But on 01.08.2023, the petitioner has been asked to stop operating the Industry on the premise that the petitioner was running the Industry without any prior consent from the respondent Pollution Control Board, Assam.

¶3Mr. Baruah, learned Standing Counsel, Pollution Control Board, Assam has submitted that the petitioner was operating the Industry without obtaining the consent to operate since about a long time. It was only on 01.08.2023, the petitioner was asked by the Pollution Control Board, Assam to stop operating the Industry as there was no prior consent to operate any industry. In the absence of consent form the Pollution Control Board is to regarded as Page No.# 3/3 violation of the provisions of the Air [Prevention and Control of Pollution] Act, 1981.

¶4Without adverting to the other rival contentions, the learned counsel for the parties have submitted that Section 21 of the Air [Prevention and Control of Pollution] Act, 1981 has inter alia provided that no person shall, without the previous consent of the State Board, establish or operate any industrial plant in an air pollution control area. It is submitted by the learned counsel for the parties that the petitioner has, on 02.08.2023, submitted an application seeking consent to operate the Industry before the respondent Pollution Control Board.

¶5Sub-section [4] of Section 21 of the Air [Prevention and Control of Pollution] Act, 1981 has provided that the State Board, within a period of 4 [four] months after the receipt of the application for consent referred to in sub-section [1], is required to pass an order in writing and for reasons to be recorded in the order, either granting the consent applied for, subject to such conditions and for such period, as may be specified in the order, or refusing such consent. In view of such position, this Court is of the considered view that as hardly a period of 1 [one] month has elapsed since the date of submission of the application, on 02.08.2023, by the petitioner seeking consent to operate the Industry, no order is required to be passed at this stage, as the respondent Pollution Control Board, Assam has to consider the said application in terms of the provisions of Air [Prevention and Control of Pollution] Act, 1981, more particularly, Section 21 thereof, on its own merits within the prescribed time period either granting or refusing such consent to operate the Industry.

¶6The writ petition is, therefore, closed with the observations that the respondent Pollution Control Board, Assam shall consider the application submitted by the petitioner, on

02.08.2023, within the prescribed period of time, in accordance with law and on its own merits.

JUDGE Comparing Assistant

PageoNo.#o1/3 GAHC010221862023 ooooooo ooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooTHEoGAUHATIoHIGHoCOURTo (HIGHoCOURToOFoASSAM,oNAGALAND,oMIZORAMoANDoARUNACHALoPRADESH)o CaseoNo.o:oWP(C)/5824/2023o M/SoMANSURIoCOTTONoINDUSTRYo THROUGHoITSoPROPRIETORoMD.oIKRARoALAMoMANSURIo,oAGEDo35oYRS,o S/O-oLATEoNIZAMUDDINoMANSURI,oVILLAGE-oNO-2oMEDHICHUBURI,o P.O-oRANGAGARA,oDIST-oSONITPUR,oASSAM,oPIN-784110 VERSUSo THEoPOLLUTIONoCONTROLoBOARDoANDo4oORSo REPRESENTEDoBYoITSoCHAIRMAN,oBAMUNIMAIDAM,oGUWAHATI-781021,o ASSAM 2:THEoMEMBERoSECRETARY oPOLLUTIONoCONTROLoBOARD oASSAM oBAMUNIMAIDAM oGUWAHATI-781021 oASSAM 3:THEoREGIONALoEXECUTIVEoENGINEER oREGIONALoLABORATORYoCUMoOFFICE oTEZPURoPOLLUTIONoCONTROLoBOARD oASSAM oNABAPUR oBYEoLANEoNO2 oMAZGAON oTEZPUR oSONITPUR-784001 4:THEoSTATEoOFoASSAM oREP.oBYoTHEoCHIEFoSECRETARYo oGOVT.oOFoASSAM oDISPUR Page No.# 2/3 GUWAHATI-06 5:THE DISTRICT COMMISSIONER (PREVIOUSLY DEPUTY COMMISSIONER) DIST- SONITPUR TEZPUR ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. P SARMAH Advocate for the Respondent : GA, ASSAM BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANISH CHOUDHURY