The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has sought replies of the Union and the Odisha governments and Essar Steel to a plea accusing the firm of drawing water from Baitarani river without forest clearance to facilitate iron ore transport.
An NGT bench of its acting Chairman Justice A S Naidu and expert member P C Mishra directed against use of the river water contrary to the agreement between the state government and the Essar Steel Orissa which was also ordered not to execute the project without Forest Clearance.
"Issue notice to the respondents both ways ie by registered post/acknowledgement due and by dasti. The water from river Baitarani shall not be used contrary to the agreement for the purpose for which the clearance has been granted. Respondent No 5 (Essar Steel) shall not go ahead with the construction of the project without obtaining Forest Clearance.
"List the matter on February 6, 2013, for appearance and filing replies," the bench said.
The tribunal's order came on a plea by Odisha natives Sarbeswar Mishra and Murli Manohar Sharma, through their counsel B P Tripathy, challenging as "illegal, arbitrary and unreasonable" the decision of the Centre and the Odisha government allowing Essar Steel to draw water from the river for transportation of iron ore through slurry pipelines and for other industrial purposes.
In their plea, they have also sought NGT's directions to restrain construction of water intake wells and pumping stations by Essar Steel for drawing water from the river.
Referring to a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Essar Steel and Odisha Government on April 21, 2005 to set up a steel power plant at Paradeep in Jagatsinghpur district, the applicants said "under the project Essar Steel has proposed to set up a 10.7 MTPA capacity iron ore benefaction plant at village Dubuna in the district of Keonjhar, Odisha".