The Hindu : Industrialist sentenced for air pollution

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 04, 2003

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Industrialist sentenced for air pollution

By Our Legal Correspondent

NEW DELHI April 3. The Supreme Court has slapped an exemplary cost of Rs. 1 lakh on an industrialist here, whose unit polluted the air, and also sentenced him to undergo a week's simple imprisonment.

A Bench, comprising Justice Y.K. Sabharwal and Justice H.K. Sema, said it was convinced that a strong signal must be sent, so that others did not repeat this offence.

The contempt charge against the industrialist, Ashok Kumar Chhabra, was that he ran a hot mix plant in his unit even after the apex court ordered closure of 44 hot mix plants in the capital on the ground that they caused pollution.

The Bench noted that the gravamen of the contemptuous act of the respondent was of a superlative dimension, as it related to the violation of not only the court's orders, but also of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.

The Bench pointed out that pollution of air had a deleterious effect on the health of the entire society.

The Bench said in air pollution-related matter or matters relating to environmental hazard, if the orders of the highest court were disobeyed, as was sought to be done in this case, the health of the entire society was at great risk.

The statement in his affidavit was all the more contemptuous, the Bench said. He was not only defending his action, but said that all orders passed by the apex court were at the behest of the pollution control committee and not in public interest.

The Bench rejected his apology.

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