The Delhi High Court on Friday sought response from the Centre and Uttar Pradesh government on a plea challenging tender inviting bids for procurement of red bricks instead of fly-ash bricks for the construction of Noida International Golf Course. A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh issued notice on the PIL to New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA), Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi State Pollution Control Board and UP State Pollution Control Board. The petition filed by one Vimalendu Jha asserted that NOIDA’s tender for procurement of red bricks was in violation of notifications issued by the Environment Ministry on the utilisation of fly ash. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan appearing for Jha, submitted that the fly ash from neighbouring areas, which could otherwise be utilised for making bricks, continued to affect the air quality in Delhi.
He said traditional red bricks are being called by Noida when plants are ready to give fly ash.
Sankaranarayanan highlighted that red bricks were also harmful to the top soil and caused damage to the environment.
As the court proceeded to list the matter for further hearing on August 27, the lawyer prayed that an order of maintenance of status quo be passed. “We will see on returnable date”, the court replied. Jha’s petition, filed through Advocates Avishkar Singhvi and Nipun Katyal, also seeks compliance of the notifications issued by the environment ministry on utilisation of fly ash as his concern is not limited to the tender in question. “Due to non-utilization of fly ash for brick manufacturing, the traditional red bricks are continued to be used and though there are norms for use of fly ash, even for manufacturing of the red bricks, yet same are not followed.”, the petition said. The PIL also sought a direction declaring that the notification issued in January 2016 on all public and private Building construction agencies within 300 km of a coal or lignite based thermal power plants mandatorily using fly ash bricks is “valid, subsisting and binding on all governmental bodies within the territorial limits of the country”.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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