Spine of bureaucracy demolished: SC
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 19 September 2013 21:08 IST
CEC headed by P V Jaykrishnan (right)
The Supreme Court today came down heavily on the whole bureaucracy as well as the Advocate General of Goa for the illegalities committed on the mining front of Goa, to please their political masters.
In fact the forest bench also sought to know the penal provisions for damaging the wildlife habitats as the counsel of Cental Empowered Committee cited several cases of illegalities to allow mining in the wild life habitats.
Adv ADN Rao, while arguing for the CEC, placed 162 cases of environment clearances issued for mining in violation of the Supreme Court judgements.
19 such ECs were issued within the Netravali wildlife sanctuary while 23 ECs were issued within one kilometer of the sanctuaries, he pointed out, in spite of Supreme Court orders.
Similarly, stated Adv Rao, 120 ECs had been given environment clearances in the 10 km zone without reference to the National Board of Wildlife, despite the Supreme Court's order.
The court expressed anguish over the illegal decisions taken in this regard by the bureaucrats in spite of advising their political masters about the legalities.
The Court was also told about the legal opinions drafted by the Goa AG, which actually legitimised illegal decisions or sought to make illegal actions into legal ones.
“Earlier, the bureaucracy provided steel frame for governance. Now officers have been writing notes to favour decisions. The bureaucracy has been shattered and its spine has been demolished,” observed the court.
The judges were extremely concerned about the impact of mining around the wildlife sanctuaries and implementation of the provisions of the Wildlife Act, 1971.
The hearing is now expected to resume on Tuesday, 23 September with Adv Rao continuing his arguments, after which the court would take up arguments of Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Mines.
Goa government would be heard the last.
