Mir Farhat
SRINAGAR, Sept 26: Jammu and Kashmir High Court today directed the State Pollution Control Board to seal the operation of hotels in ecologically “fragile” Gulmarg resort which are not complying with Pollution Control Act 1974.
A Division Bench of High Court comprising Chief Justice M M Kumar and Justice Muzaffar Hussain Attar directed the PCB to seal the hotels in presence of the executive magistrate.
Hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by advocate Ajaz Chesti to stop illegal constructions in the resort, the bench observed the PCB had issued notices of suspension to various hotels on September 19, forty days after the court passed directions to the board to act against violators of various pollution control measures.
The court observed that as per the guidelines by the PCB, every hotel with 20 or more rooms is required to have an individual Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) in case common STP facility is not available.
“On record no hotel has STP in operation and in working condition,” the bench said, adding, as per the report filed by Gulmarg Development Authority, only one hotel has STP which is yet to be functional.
The court pulled up the PCB authorities for filing “far from satisfactory” report and directed the PCB chairman and secretary for their personal appearance in the court on next hearing to explain why action might not initiated against them.
“PCB is deliberately not performing its functions in accordance with the Statutory provisions, rules, regulations and the policy…it is for them to explain why such patent and apparent violation have been permitted,” the court said.
The bench directed the report with regard to sealing of the hotels be filed by September 28 before registrar judicial.
While advocate Ajaz Chesti appeared on behalf of the petitioner, the respondents were represented by Advocate General M I, Qadri.
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