NGT Clears Vasai School Over Encroachment and Sewage Discharge Claims
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has dismissed an environmental application filed against Vasai-based Gnyanodaya Multipurpose High School & Jr. College over allegations of illegal construction, encroachment on a river course, and untreated sewage discharge at Village Kolhi.
The dismissal followed a report submitted by an NGT-appointed Joint Committee, which inspected the site and found no substance in the allegations regarding unauthorized construction, encroachment, or environmental contamination.
Environmentalist Rajiv Bhagelu Gupta had approached the tribunal seeking the removal of alleged illegal structures on Survey Nos. 11D and 11A in Village Kolhi and the restoration of the affected area. He also sought the revocation of commencement and occupancy certificates issued by the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation until compliance with environmental and forest regulations was achieved.
The application claimed that the school buildings were constructed close to a natural watercourse originating from the Tungareshwar hills without adhering to a mandatory nine-metre buffer. Gupta alleged that parts of the riverbed were filled with sand and construction waste, a compound wall disrupted the natural flow of water, untreated sewage was discharged into the river, and the approach road crossed protected forest land without permission.
The school denied all claims, calling the application frivolous. It informed the tribunal that the applicant had previously filed two Public Interest Litigations before the Bombay High Court on the same matter, which were disposed of with directions to make representations to the civic commissioner. The institution stated that its structures stand on Survey No. 11D, which is non-forest land, and that Survey No. 11A had been denotified as forest land in 1942.
In its seven-page order, the tribunal observed that the Joint Committee's inspection found commencement certificates in place for the construction, noted that the completed premises were operational as a school, and verified the installation of two septic tanks. The committee found no discharge of sewage into the nearby nalla.
The tribunal also noted that pendrives submitted by the applicant containing video files of the site could not be opened. Concluding that the Joint Committee report showed no wrongdoing or encroachment, the NGT dismissed the application.
