IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
LETTERS PATENT APPEAL No.312 of 2010
IN
CIVIL WRIT JURISDICTION CASE No. 13596 of 2008
====================================================
THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS
Versus
GAMMON INDIA LIMITED
====================================================
WITH
LETTERS PATENT APPEAL No.315 of 2010
IN
CIVIL WRIT JURISDICTION CASE No. 13594 of 2008
====================================================
THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS
Versus
GAMMON INDIA LIMITED
====================================================
WITH
LETTERS PATENT APPEAL No.316 of 2010
IN
CIVIL WRIT JURISDICTION CASE No. 13365 of 2008
====================================================
THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS
Versus
GAMMON INDIA LIMITED
====================================================
WITH
LETTERS PATENT APPEAL No.318 of 2010
IN
CIVIL WRIT JURISDICTION CASE No. 13595 of 2008
====================================================
THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS
Versus
GAMMON INDIA LIMITED
====================================================
Appearance :
For the Appellants : Mr. V.M.K.Sinha, Spl.P.P (Mines)
For the Respondent: Mr. Rajendra Prasad Singh, Senior Advocate
====================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE JYOTI SARAN
ORAL ORDER
-2-
(Per: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE)
5. 3.12.2010. Admit.
These appeals have been preferred by the
State of Bihar under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent
against the common judgment and order dated 8th
January 2010 passed by the learned single Judge in a
group of writ petitions. The learned single Judge has
directed to renew the quarry lease earlier awarded to the
writ petitioner Gammon India Limited. The learned
single Judge was of the opinion that refusal to renew the
lease which had expired on 16th October 2007 was not
justified.
Since the date of the impugned order the
Government of Bihar has amended the Bihar Minor
mineral Concession Rules, 1972 to impose a complete
ban on mining of stone under the amended Rule 53.
Nevertheless, the State of Bihar has reserved power to
grant such lease in public interest if it is satisfied, “that
quarrying or mining of stone may not adversely affect
ecology and environment and further there is
requirement of stone for public use”.
We are informed that the mining lease given
to the writ petitioner was confined to captive use, i.e. the
writ petitioner was supposed to utilize the stone quarried
by it for the purpose of laying or maintaining the roads.
In our opinion, the ends of justice will be met if we,
without entering into the larger issue whether the
restriction imposed under the amended Rule will apply to
the cases like the petitioner’s, direct the State
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Government to consider to relax the restriction, if it is of
the opinion that construction and maintenance of roads in
the State of Bihar is in public interest and for public use
and that the writ petitioner utilizes stone quarried by it
for that purpose alone and none other.
In the above circumstances, pending the
appeal, we direct the District Magistrate, Gaya to
forward the applications for renewal of lease made by
the writ petitioner, which are subject matter of the
present litigation, to the Principal Secretary, Department
of Mining and Geology, Government of Bihar, Patna
within three weeks from today. The Principal Secretary,
Department of Mining and Geology will consider the
applications in the light of the observations made by the
learned single Judge and the above referred amended
Rule 53 of the Rules and complete the exercise and make
the necessary order within three months from today.
The order will be placed on the record of this
Appeal. Stand over to 11th March 2011.
Copy of this order be given to both the
learned Advocates.
(R.M. Doshit, CJ)
(Jyoti Saran, J)
Pawan/-