National Green Tribunal Ruling on Faridabad Hospital

New Delhi, Aug 25: The National Green Tribunal today cracked the whip on a 450-bed super-specialty hospital in Faridabad town of Haryana and quashed its environmental clearance while slapping a fine of almost Rs 12 crore as damages for degrading the ecology.

QRG hospital, a venture of the promoters of Havells India, were directed to pay an environmental compensation of Rs 6.88 crore for degrading the environment and another Rs 5 crore for having started the project without obtaining prior environmental clearance.

Noting that the project's proponents violated the law and "frustrated" the very object of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the Tribunal quashed the environmental clearance granted to it.

"These are not the innocent people unaware of law residing in some remote parts of the country, all these are builders constructing huge residential, commercial, mixed purpose blocks, like hospital, as in the present case.

The project proponents are persons having large means and perspicacity. These projects have started after notification of 2006 has come into force, but project proponents did not even bother to apply for the grant of environmental clearance prior to starting construction of the project," the bench, headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar, said.

The Tribunal directed that the super-speciality hospital, started by Vivekanand Ashram Society and QRG Medicare Limited, would not carry out any activity in the entire premises and ordered the state pollution control board and Haryana's Environment Impact Assessment Authority to seal the premises if any activity was carried out.

The direction came on a petition filed by Faridabad resident Krishan Lal Gera who claimed that land use rules of Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) does not permit construction of a super-speciality hospital at that site.

According to the petition, the land was initially allotted to the Vivekanand Ashram Society for establishing a residential school and a social development centre for Dalit students but was taken over for constructing a 450-bed multi-specialty hospital by Qimat Rai Gupta Medicare Limited.