Tanneries caused irreversible pollution in and around Palar river, notes SC; orders TN govt to compensate affected families

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a slew of directions, including compensation to the aggrieved, to mitigate severe pollution in Palar River in Tamil Nadu due to discharge of untreated effluents from local tanneries.

A bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan asked the Tamil Nadu government to set up a panel headed by a former high court judge to assess and remediate the ecological damage.

"The tanneries by discharging untreated or partially treated effluents into the River Palar and surrounding areas have resulted in irreversible damage to the water bodies, groundwater and agricultural lands..,” the court noted.

The verdict came on a lead petition titled: Vellore District Environment Monitoring Committee v. State of Tamil Nadu.

Pronouncing the verdict, Justice Mahadevan mandated compensation for the affected families besides directing the recovery of costs from polluting industries under the "Polluter Pays" principle.

“The state government is directed to pay compensation to all the affected families and individuals, if not already paid, in terms of the award dated March 7, 2001 and August 24, 2009, six weeks from today,” the court said.

It asked the state government to recover the compensation amount from the polluters, if not recovered.

The bench directed the state government in consultation with the Central government to constitute, within four weeks, a committee headed by a retired high court judge and members comprising secretaries of state and Central departments besides environmental experts, representatives of the affected communities and any other person deemed fit for conducting an audit to maintain and create a clean and healthy environment in Vellore.

The committee shall carry out the tasks and ensure its implementation until the damage caused is reversed, it added.

“This environmental degradation has impoverished local farmers and has caused human suffering to the local residents and the tannery workers thereby endangering public health and life. It is also abundantly clear that the discharges were neither authorised nor were as per the standards set by the Control Boards,” the judgement said.

Though reports indicated authorities had established a central effluent treatment plant, said the court, the industries still hadn't achieved zero levels while failing to comply with statutory environmental guidelines.

"Industries have not complied with the statutory guidelines framed by the government as per the appellant Vellore District Monitoring Committee. Considering all these factors, we deem it appropriate to issue certain directions," it said.

The bench said the judgment was a "continuing mandamus” and it would periodically review compliance.

A compliance report was directed by the court within four months as it warned stringent consequences for non-compliance.

"If any of these conditions are breached, we will send them to Tihar (jail). Not even any jail in Tamil Nadu. We will keep monitoring till we both are here," cautioned the bench.

A detailed judgement is awaited.