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Mantri Techzone Pvt. Ltd. v. Forward Foundation & Ors.

Civil Appeal · 2019 INSC 315Decided 5 Mar 2019
Civil Appeal No. 5016 of 2016
Justice A.K. Sikri · Justice S. Abdul Nazeer · Justice M.R. Shah

Background

An environmental organisation (Forward Foundation) had complained to the National Green Tribunal that a large residential/commercial/IT-park project in Bengaluru, built on land allotted by the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board, was encroaching on storm-water drains (Rajakaluves) and wetland catchment area feeding Bellandur Lake. The NGT ruled that construction violated environmental norms and imposed a strict buffer/green-zone requirement around lakes and drains (75m for lakes, down to 25m for minor drains), directing demolition of offending structures. The developer (Mantri Techzone, as respondent No. 9 before the NGT) and several other affected parties, including the State of Karnataka, appealed this and connected NGT orders to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court heard all the connected appeals together. It held that the buffer-zone direction, as it applied generally to many unrelated land owners/developers who were not responsible for the specific encroachment found against Mantri Techzone and its co-respondent, was not justified and set aside that general portion of the NGT's order for those other appellants. However, for Mantri Techzone and its co-respondent (the parties actually found to have encroached on the Rajakaluves), the Court upheld the NGT's findings and buffer-zone directions, dismissing their specific appeal (Civil Appeal No. 5016 of 2016) and sustaining the order against them.

Lesson Learnt

Builders and developers can be held to strict environmental buffer-zone requirements around lakes and natural drains when courts find they actually encroached on such ecologically sensitive land, even while sparing other, unrelated parties from a blanket rule that wasn't justified as applied to them.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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