Dismissed

Arun Kumar Sharma v. Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board

NGT9 Aug 2024Original Application No. 73/2024

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The National Green Tribunal Bench dismissed an application challenging a No Objection Certificate granted for a petrol pump. The Court held the application was not maintainable under the NGT Act as Petroleum Rules are not covered. A joint committee report found no violation of CPCB distance guidelines and confirmed proper permissions with safety conditions were in place.

What did the court decide?

Original Application No. 73/2024(CZ) dismissed as devoid of merit and not maintainable.

Arun Kumar Sharma vs Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board — Environment and Pollution | NGT (2024)

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Item No. 07

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BEFORE THE NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL CENTRAL ZONE BENCH, BHOPAL (Through Video Conferencing)

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Original Application No. 73/2024(CZ)

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(I.A.No.27/2024)

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Arun Kumar Sharma & Ors. Applicant(s)

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Vs.

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State of Madhya Pradesh & Ors.

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Respondent(s)

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Date of Hearing: 09.08.2024

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CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE SHEO KUMAR SINGH, JUDICIAL MEMBER HON'BLE DR. A SENTHIL VEL, EXPERT MEMBER

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For Applicant(s): Mr. Prateek Jain, Adv. For Respondent(s) : Mr. Rohit Sharma, Adv. Ms. Parul Bhadoria, Adv. Ms. Vanita Bhargava, Adv. Ms. Nandita Chauhan, Adv. Mr. Prashant M. Harne, Adv. (with Mr. Mehul Bhardwaj, Adv.)

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ORDER

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Issue raised in this application is grant of permission for setting up of a petrol pump retail outlet at Khasra No. 109/1/2 (S), on SH 10 Bhopal to Berasia road, Intkhedi Sadak Tehsil Huzur, District Bhopal in violation of rule and guidelines set up by CPCB and PESO.

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The matter was taken up by this Tribunal and a committee was constituted with direction to submit the factual and action taken report.

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In compliance thereof, the member of the committee visited the site and submitted the report as follows:_-

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A. “Field Observations:-

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i. Joint committee on dated 07/06/2024 conducted a site visit of Khasra No. 109/1/20 (S) stiuated on SH 10

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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Bhopal to Berasia road, Village- Intkhedi Road, TehsilHuzur, District-Bhopal. Apart from the Joint Committee members following officers namely Ms. Prakamya Tiwari, AE, RO, MPPCB, Bhopal, Shri Kanak Meena, Deputy Controller, PESO, Bhopal and Shri Kailash Sharwa, Patwari, Halka-Intkhedi Sadak, Gram Panchayat-Intkhedi Sadak were also present during the site visit. The Advocate of petitioner Shri Prateek Jain was informed by the nodal department about the visit of committee and he was present during the visit. Also, the representative of petrol pump Shri Aman Ahmed Khan was present. The Geographical locations, photographs and visual observations were recorded during inspection.

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ii. During inspection, Joint Committee visited the site of Petrol Pump mentioned in the petition. The details observed during the inspection are mentioned as under:

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a. The site is located on SH 10, Intkhedi Road, Village–Intkhedi Road, Tehsil-Huzur, DistrictBhopal. The geographical location of the site is latitude 23022’20.95’’ N and longitude 77023’58.41 E’’.

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b. The SH 10 road is situated on the East of the petrol pump. The New Government Higher Secondary School is located at a distance of approximately 120 meters away to the SouthWest of the petrol pump.

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c. On north side of the petrol pump there are some commercial establishments located at a distance of approximately 30 meters away, the north of the petrol pump.

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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d. On south side of the petrol pump there are some commercial buildings, incomplete building structures named as Maruti Udyog, one cement shop, steel TMT bar Shop as per the sign boards placed on the shops, which are located at a distance of approximately 30 meters away.

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e. The primary development work for the establishment of Petrol Pump was found in progress.

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f. The residential colonies as mentioned in the petition are located on the west side of the petrol pump.

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g. The distance from the dispensing unit to the boundary of the Petrol pump towards residential colonies on west side is approx 38 meters.

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h. During visit of the Joint Committee, no residential houses were found constructed in the above residential colonies and no habitation were observed.

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i. No high tension line was found passing through the petrol pump site.

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B. Information provided by the Revenue Department, Tehsil-Huzur, Bhopal

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i. Letter vide dated 19/06/2024 was issued by MPPCB (Nodal Department) to SDM, Tehsil-Huzur to provide the information of permissions / locations of Petrol Pump, School, Hospital and Residential colony within 50 meter distance from the Petrol Pump as per revenue records.

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ii. SDM, Tehsil-Huzur, Bhopal vide letter dated 03/07/2024 provided the information. The copy

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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of the letter is enclosed as Annexure III. The main points of the letter are mentioned as under:-

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No	*Main Points*	*As per Revenue Record*
1.	Petrol Pump is proposed on Khasra No. 109/1/2 located at Village-Intekhedi Road, Tehsil-Huzur, District- Bhopal.	The Petrol Pump is located on part of khasra no. 109 and on khasra no.109/1/2 Village-Intekhedi Road Tehsil-Huzur, District- Bhopal of area 0.19 hectares, which is registered for commercial purpose in the name of Aman Ahmed Khan S/o Jameel Ahmed Khan.
2.	The residential colonies respectively Anjani Nandan Dham and Ramnagar are established for residential purpose at Khasra No. 108, 109/2 and 109/1/1 near the site (Petrol Pump),	The residential colonies respectively Anjani Nandan Dham and Ramnagar established at Khasra No. 108, 109/2 and 109/1/1 are Unauthorized residential colonies.
3.	Government Higher Secondary School is located 50 meters from the petrol pump and a hospital is also located nearby.	No Hospital or Government / private school located within a periphery of 50 meters from the petrol pump and there is no residential activity within a periphery of 50 meters from the fuel section of the petrol pump is operated.
4.	Information of the designated residential area, school and hospital located around the said petrol pump.	The designated residential area, school and hospital are not within the periphery of 50 meters from Petrol Pump. The traditional settlement / population of Village- Intkhedi Road is 600 meters away from the under construction Petrol Pump.

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C. Information of MPPCB:-

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i. As per the application submitted by Project proponent of Petrol Pump for establishing a Petrol Pump, MPPCB vide outward No:24612 dated

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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19/07/2023 issued Consent to Establish under Section 25 of the Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and Section 21 of the Air (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.

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ii. The Consent to Establish was issued with the conditions that new petrol pump should be at least 50 meters away from school, hospital and residential areas. If Petrol pump located within 50 meters radius of any school, hospital and residential complex it must obey provisions of Petroleum Rules, 2002, administered by Petroleum and Explosive safety organization. No high-tension wire should be passed through outlet.

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D. Findings of the Joint Committee:-

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i. The committee finds that the residential colonies near the petrol pump as mentioned in the petition are unauthorized residential colonies and as per the record of Revenue department there is no designated residential colony within 50 meters distance from dispensing unit of petrol pump.

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ii. It is also found that there are no schools or hospitals exist within 50 meters distance from the petrol pump.

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iii. The nearest habitation of people around the Village is 600 meters away from the Petrol Pump that is under construction at Village- Intkhedi road.

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iv. Committee has referred the Section - H of Central Pollution Control Board Guidelines (CPCB) for

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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setting of new Petrol Pump dated 07/01/2020. The section - H is reproduced as under:

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“Section - H : In case of siting criteria for petrol pumps new Retail Outlets shall not be located within a radia1 distance of 50 meters (from fill point/ dispensing units/ vent pipe whichever is nearest) from schools, hospitals (10 beds and above) and residential areas designated as per local laws. In case of constraints in providing 50 meters distance, the retail outlet shall implement additional safety measures as prescribed by PESO. In no case the distance between new retail outlet from schools, hospitals (10 beds and above) and residential area designated as per local laws shall be less than 30 meters. No high tension line shall pass over the retail outlet.”

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v. It is humbly submitted that Prior Approval granted to M/s Reliance B. P. Mobility, by the O/o JtCCE, PESO, Bhopal, in Form-XIV of Petroleum Rules, 2002, Consent to Establish granted by MP Pollution Control Board, Bhopal and No Objection Certificate granted by the District Collector, Bhopal are issued as per the prevailing Rules and Regulations. It is also submitted that above said Approval/Consent/No- objection Certificates are issued in conformity to the Siting Criteria prescribed in the guidelines of CPCB and no valid establishment such as Residential colony, School, Hospital was found constructed within the periphery of 50 meters from the new Petroleum Retail Outlet, of M/s Reliance B. P. Mobility, proposed on part of Khasra No. 109 and Khasra

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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No.109/1/2, Village-Intekhedi Road Tehsil-Huzur, District- Bhopal.”

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The crux of the joint committee report discloses that statutory permission has been taken by the project proponent and NOC has been granted by the District Collector and Consent to Establish were granted by the State Pollution Control Board.

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Contention of the applicant is that the siting criteria as decided by the CPCB has not been followed by the respondents and further that consent letter clearly prescribes that petrol pumps should not be located within a prescribed area of the abadi, school or hospital and rules with regard to PESO should be followed.

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The contention of the intervener are that the intervenor in the instant Original Application is the owner of the land identified as Khasra No. 109/1, covering an area of 0.760 hectares, located at Patwari Halka No. 10, Village Intkhedi Sadak, Tehsil Huzur, District Bhopal (MP). The Intervenor purchased this land from KYCR facility through a registered sale deed dated 09.12.2022.

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The Intervenor applied for a dealership with Reliance BP Mobility Ltd. (Reliance BP) for a 'Dealer Owned Dealer Operated (DODO) Outlet' under the name MIs Super Fuels India, via an application dated 14.04.2022. Following comprehensive scrutiny and documentation, the Intervenor was granted the dealership by Reliance BP Mobility through letter of Intent dated 30.11.2022.

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The Intervenor received necessary permissions to open a DODO Outlet on the land in question. These permissions include an NOC dated 30.04.2024 from the Ministry of Petroleum & Explosives Safety Organization (PESO) granted to Reliance BP Mobility Ltd., an NOC dated 26.04.2023 from the CEO of Janpad Panchayat Phanda, Bhopal (MP), an

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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NOC dated 26.05.2023 from MPRDC, an NOC dated 26.04.2023 from MPEB, an NOC dated 10.04.2023 from the Industrial Department, and a Consent to Establish dated 19.07.2023 from the Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board.

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The submission of the learned counsel for the respondent nos. 4 and 5 are

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that the present Original Application is preferred against the grant of No objection certificate dated 7.2.2024 by the Collector Bhopal, Respondent No. 3, for construction of a petrol pump in Khasra No. 109/1/2(S) on SH 10 Bhopal to Berasia Road, Intkhedi Sadak, Tehsil Huzur, District Bhopal ("subject land") in alleged violation of Petroleum Rules, 2002. At the outset it is submitted that such a challenge is outside the scope of Schedule I of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 and that an Application under Section 14 of the NGT Act only lies when a substantial question relating to environment arises out of implementation of the enactments specified in Schedule, I of the NGT Act. Petroleum Rules, 2002 is not an enactment mentioned in Schedule 1.

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It is further submitted that while the NOC which is sought to be challenged was granted on 7th February 2024, the purported authorization letter which has been signed by only three residents and not all local residents, as wrongly portrayed in the OA, and that too on 14th July 2023, much prior to the grant of NOC clearly shows that the complaint is not genuine but motivated to harass answering respondents. 11. That the Application has been filed on the premise that in the near future a residential colony will be developed in Khasra numbers 109/1/1(S), 109/2,108 which are adjacent to the petrol pump to be constructed by the answering respondents and is near a government school.

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As per the Guidelines for setting up new petrol pumps dated 07.01.2020 issued by CPCB, petrol pumps new retail outlets shall not be located

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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within a radial distance of 50 meters (from fill point/ dispensing units/vent pipe whichever is nearest) from schools. Hospitals (10 beds and above) and residential areas designated as per local laws. There is no averment whatsoever that the siting criteria as stated in the Guidelines has been violated. It has also been found by the Committee that no hospital or government private school is-located within a periphery of 50 metres from the petrol pump. As per the Applicant's own case the Government school is situated at a distance of 50 metres and not within 50 meters.

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The petrol pump is beyond 50 meters of a Government school and not near a hospital and there is no non-compliance on the part of Respondent Nos. 4 & 5 since nowhere is it averred that the siting criteria has been violated.

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The main ground for challenge to the NOC dated 07.02.2024 is that it is in violation of Rule 144 of Petroleum Rules 2002, which issue cannot be raised before this Hon'ble Tribunal as per Section 14 read with Schedule I of the NGT Act. The environmental and safety concerns raised are safeguarded by the conditions imposed in the PESO approval dated 22.05.2023 and Consent to Operate dated 19.07.2023 and therefore the application made is clearly frivolous and in fact premature. The said approval is testimony to the fact that the same has been granted pursuant to the Safety and Test Certificate as required under Rules 130 and 126 of the Petroleum Rules, 2002 issued by the competent person approved by CCE, Nagpur. Thus, all the safety measures as prescribed by PESO have been adhered to.

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Notices were also sent to respondent no. 6, who in compliance of the order filed a reply, which is on record. Learned Counsel for the respondent no.

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6, Mr. Rohit Sharma has argued that the Petroleum Rules are not covered

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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under the scheduled Act of National Green Tribunal and the allegations regarding blatant violation of CPCB Guidelines remained unsubstantiated even as per the observations furnished by the Joint Committee Members comprising of Members from District Administration, Bhopal, PESO & Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board. The Answering Respondent No.6 is the rightful owner of a land forming part of Khasra No. 109/1/2 where a Petrol Pump belonging to Reliance BP Mobility is being established after procuring all the valid permissions from the competent departments.

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It is further argued that the Google map, which has been placed on record by the petitioner shows incorrect measurement and the joint committee has submitted the exact map, which clarifies that the distance between the retail outlet of the answering respondent no. 6 and the nearest government school is approximately 135 meters. Further contention of the respondents are that the Petroleum Rules, 2002 are not falling within the schedule of National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 and any objection with respect to The Petroleum Rules, 2002 cannot be entertained under the NGT Act, 2010.

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Learned counsel for the applicant has filed the objection against the findings of the joint inspection report and submitted that Collector has wrongly issued NOC or the diagram prepared by the joint committee is not as per guidelines for setting up new petrol pumps or that the committee has misinterpreted the guidelines.

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It is further argued that the entries in plot no. 109/2 and 108 are transferred of land to private owners which discloses that it is for the residential purposes. The applicant has further challenged the authority of the revenue officials to convert the residential land into the commercial plots and that the provisions contained in Section 172 of the Madhya

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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Pradesh Land Revenue Code, 1959 and Madhya Pradesh Gram Panchayat (Development of Colonies) Rule, 2014 has not been properly followed. Rejoinder to reply filed by the respondent no. 6 and rejoinder reply filed by the respondent nos. 4 and 5 have also been filed.

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During the course of hearing learned counsel for the State Mr. Prashant M. Harne and Mr. Rohit Sharma learned counsel for the respondent have submitted that the crux of the matter is distance from the hospital, private school etc. and it is clearly mentioned that no hospital or school is located within 50 meters from the periphery of the petrol pump and there is no residential activity within the periphery of 50 meters from the section/ petrol pump. The findings of the committee 7.3 says that the nearest habitation, pupil around the village is 600 meters away from the petrol pump.

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Learned counsel for the applicant has submitted that the perusal of the land records reveals that several persons have purchased the land and their names are mutated. The revenue entries shows the mutation of the year 2023-24. The contention of the respondents /project proponent and the State counsel are that the application was entertained in the year 2022 dated 14.04.2022 and after comprehensive scrutiny and documentation the M/s Reliance B. P. Mobility granted the dealership vide intend letter dated 30.11.2022 and consent to establish and NOC was issued accordingly.

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We are of the view that the matter with regard to change of user of land or validity of the colony or construction of the houses are within the domain of revenue authorities. Only thing which is required to be considered is compliance of the guidelines issued by the CPCB for establishment of petrol pump and this application has been filed on the ground of distance

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

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which was found to be not in violation of any guidelines and thus this application is not maintainable and not tenable.

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In view of the above facts, argument and records submitted by the parties, this application is devoid of any merit and deserves to be dismissed and dismissed accordingly.

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Sheo Kumar Singh, JM

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Dr. A Senthil Vel, EM

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09^th August, 2024 O.A No. 73/2024(CZ) PN

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OA No. 73/2024(CZ)

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Arun Kumar Sharma& Ors.Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh

Arun Kumar Sharma v. Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Arun Kumar Sharma v. Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

A compact analysis

Issues for consideration

Statutes considered

Parties & counsel

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Case details

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