Bhubaneswar: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has constituted a joint committee to investigate allegations of violations in the establishment and operation of a Micro-Com posting Centre (MCC) in Kapilaprasad Housing Board Colony under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC).
The tribunal’s move came May 26 while hearing a petition alleging that the facility was set up and is operating in violation of prescribed siting criteria and minimum buffer-zone norms applicable to solid waste management and processing facilities. The petition said residents of the colony have complained that the MCC, located adjacent to residential houses without any buffer zone, has become a major source of nuisance and health hazards.
“Persistent foul odour, noise and air pollution from the facility have made life increasingly difficult for residents, particularly senior citizens,” said the petition filed by advocates Sankar Prasad Pani and Ashutosh Padhy. The petition also alleged that although the facility has a waste-processing capacity exceeding 10 metric tonnes per day (TPD), it was installed and operated without obtaining the mandatory authorisation from the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB).
According to the petition, the facility was projected as a smaller MCC with a capacity of less than 5 TPD, which would otherwise be exempt from the consent regime. The petition further argued that the land on which the MCC has been established earlier functioned as a natural rainwater drainage channel, helping prevent waterlogging in the area.
The site was also earmarked as a heritage zone in the City’s development plan, making it unsuitable for a waste management facility, the petition stated. After hearing the parties and examining the records, the NGT observed that the allegations raised substantial environmental issues related to the implementation of laws listed under Schedule I of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010.
The tribunal noted that the claims require physical verification by competent state authorities, which are under a statutory obligation to take prompt remedial action if environmental violations are established. The NGT constituted a joint committee comprising representatives of the Member Secretary of the OSPCB and the Khurda District Magistrate and directed it to conduct a detailed inquiry into the matter.
The committee has been tasked with examining the allegations, verifying the factual position on the ground, associating the applicant and representatives of the project proponents, and taking appropriate remedial measures if any environmental violations are found.
The tribunal directed the committee to follow due process and ensure that all stakeholders, including affected residents and project authorities, are given an opportunity to be heard in accordance with the principles of natural justice. The committee has been asked to submit its report to the Registrar of the NGT’s Kolkata Bench within three months.
The matter will be reviewed after submission of the committee’s findings, according to the order passed by Judicial Member Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi and Expert Member Ishwar Singh.