The Supreme Court today reserved its order over mining by the French cement giant Lafarge in the forest of the East Khasi hills in Meghalaya for its Bangladesh-based cement plant.
A special forest bench headed by the Chief Justice SH Kapadia concluded the marathon hearing over the batch of petitions filed by local residents, company and other parties.
The bench also asked the Center and Lafarge to file their written submissions before it by Friday.
Earlier, the apex court had on February 5, 2010 stopped Lafarge from carrying out limestone mining in Meghalaya for its cement plant, saying that mining in the environmentally sensitive zone could not be allowed.
During the proceedings, Lafarge faced some tough question after its counsel Soli Sorabjee again reiterated that the company was not aware of fact that project site was actually a forest area.
He further submitted that even the Ministry of Forest and Enviornment (MoEF) was not aware of existence of dense forest area.
The bench did not seem to be satisfied and shot back," when you have visited the site, you could have seen the forests. Do not say that it was notified or uniformed. Initially when your engineers have gone there, they might have seen the forest".
The apex court further said that project was in the core of the "tropical deciduous forest" of that area.
Attorney General Goolam E Vahanvati appearing for the government informed the bench that the mining site was in the forest area and after realising the facts, it had asked to stop mining activity in the area.
He further submitted that the government had already worked on a practical suggestion as directed by the apex court earlier and has set up a special purpose vehicle for the benefit of the local tribal communities.
"Money has been now paid by the Lafarge. SPV is set up which would work in the radius of 50 Km of the site," he said.
However, the bench pointed to Vahanvati that government's most submission and arguments were still based on the earlier Environmental Clearance granted to the company in August 2001.
The apex court was hearing the plea over the revised environmental clearance given to Lafarge.
MoEF had given revised environmental clearance to Lafarge last April on the directions of the Supreme Court after finding the mining project in the forest land.
People of Shella village, who are claiming to be in the radius of the mines, are opposing the revised clearance given by the MoEF.
Lafarge is defending its case on the basis of DFO's report given on June 30, 2000, stating that it was a waste land and there was no forest there.
On April 24, the ministry told the Supreme Court that it had cleared the mining project of Lafarge Umiam Mining, a sister concern of the French major, with strict riders.
The MoEF's revised clearance came after the apex court on April 12 directed it to take a final decision on the 116 hectares limestone mine area in the Khasi Hills Forest area of Meghalaya.
The $255 million Lafarge Surma Cement project at Chhatak in Bangladesh is wholly dependent on limestone extracted from East Khasi Hills of Meghalaya.
Limestone was transported from Meghalaya to Bangladesh in a 17 km-long conveyor belt.
