Serious exception to the “inhabitable” conditions at some residential quarters of National Green Tribunal members at the Commonwealth Games Village has been taken by the Supreme court of India today here in Delhi and it has been also said by it that it may take a decision to stop the functioning of the NGT if the government fails to take proper action.
“If it is found that the accommodation is not fit for human inhabitation then this court may have to pass order for stay of the National Green Tribunal Act,” a bench comprising justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya said.
The bench passed the order after it was informed that the four accommodation provided at the CWG village to the members, both judicial and expert, were “inhabitable” as there were cracks and seepage on the walls.
It asked the advocates Binu Tamta and Sanjay Parikh, appearing for the NGT and the petitioner to inspect the accommodation and apprise the court.
Additional Solicitor General P P Malhotra was granted three days time to verify the facts about the accommodation.
The bench, which decided to hear the matter on April 8, said if the members were not provided the accommodation commensurate to their status they would not join the NGT.
“Why should they join if they are not provided accommodation commensurate to their status,” the bench said and added that “the tribunal shall not function till the accommodation are made available”.
The bench said till then the high courts will entertain the matters of forest and environment.
It said the Solicitor General had given the undertaking that the members of the NGT would be provided with accommodation commensurate to their status.
The bench was anguished that since last one-and-half year the matter has been dragging.
The apex court on March 15 had also set April 30 as deadline for making functional benches of NGT at Bhopal, Pune and Kolkata and had warned the states concerned that failure to do will require presence of their senior officials before it.
PTI
