Patna high court concerned over failure to meet deadlines on pollution check

PATNA: The Patna high court on Friday sought counter affidavits from Centre and state government within three weeks’ time on steps and plan for curbing pollution in Patna.
A bench of Justices Shivaji Pandey and Partha Sarthy expressed concern over pollution in Patna and the government’s failure to meet the deadlines for its action plans mooted for bringing down pollution level in the state capital.The court was hearing a PIL fled by one Dr Renu Kumari.
Union ministry of petroleum and natural gas, Bihar State Pollution Control Board (BSPCB), urban development and housing department, transport department, road construction department and Patna Municipal Corporation would also have to file their individual counter affidavits about their proposed steps to curb pollution.
The court also expressed concern over depleting groundwater level and felling of trees for developmental works in the city.
The petitioner submitted that the BSPCB failed to meet the deadline for curbing pollution and may be directed to implement its action plans.
The PIL urged the court that transport department authorities be directed to run all city buses in Patna on CNG. The state government should lead from the front by first converting all its diesel vehicles into CNG and removal of over 15 years’ old vehicles from road.
The petitioner had mentioned the fact that Patna is world’s seventh most polluted city despite no industrial establishments. The petitioner was represented by Apurva Kumar and Avinash Chandra while Ramakant Sharma appeared for central government, Vinita Singh for state and Parijat Saurav for the transport department.
HC bars education secretary, Madhubani DM from withdrawing salaries: The Patna high court has barred education department’s additional chief secretary R K Mahajan, Madhubani DM Shirsat Kapil Ashok, district education officer (DEO), district programme officer (DPO) and block development officer (BDO) of Jaynagar from withdrawing their salaries until they reply to the show-cause notices or implement court’s order to appoint one Jay Prakash Narayan Ram on compassionate grounds.
The order was passed by Justice Anil Kumar Upadhyay on August 14. September 4 is the next date of hearing in the case. Ram’s father had died while working as an assistant teacher in a Jaynagar block school on October 15, 2013. The petitioner applied on December 20, 2013 for his appointment on compassionate grounds, but no decision was taken for four years. Ram then filed a writ petition before the high court. Justice Upadhyay ordered the DPO on February 5 last year to take a decision in Ram’s case within 60 days as per the government policy. When the court order was not implemented, a contempt petition was filed on May 17 last year. On July 24, the court directed the authorities concerned to reply to the show-cause notices within two weeks’ time on compliance of its order. On August 14, the court found that neither its order was complied with nor any reply to the show-cause notices was filed. Irked over it, it directed the officers not to withdraw their salaries until the court order was complied with.
Petitioner told to submit land records of Shahpur-Khagaul road: The Patna high court on Friday directed petitioner Dharmendra Kumar to bring land documents in support of his allegation that a road connecting Shahpur and Khagaul through a dam of state government had been encroached and wrongly fenced by Danapur Cantonment Board.
The petitioner in his PIL alleged that the road closed by the cantonment authorities is built on the state government land and ut was creating problems for common people to commute from Shahpur. He had also alleged that neither the state government nor Bihar State Power Holding Company Limited was taking any step even after one of the electric poles was on the said piece of land.
A division bench of Justices Shivaji Pandey and Partha Sarthy ordered the petitioner to bring on record the relevant documents to support his claim.
Petitioner’s counsel Devendra Kumar Sinha submitted a map before the court to prove that the land belonged to the state government. But additional solicitor general SD Sanjay opposed Sinha saying nothing was clearly mentioned in the PIL to prove that it was a state land.
Sanjay also submitted that the cantonment board had nothing to do with the land as it’s just like a municipal corporation and defence estate officer looks after such issues.
Adopt online tendering process: The bench of Justices Shivaji Pandey and Partha Sarthy, while hearing a PIL filed by Mani Bhushan Yadav, directed the state government to strictly follow the online tendering process to procure materials for prisons across the state. The petitioner’s counsel Rakesh Kumar Sharma and Alok Anand submitted that even after filing of online tender, one had to go inside a prison to submit hard copy of the document required and only those applicants having good rapport with prison officials are allowed to enter the premises for the purpose. The court, while disposing of the matter, directed prisons directorate to adhere to the guidelines of complete online tendering process.