PANAJI
The Baina Ramponkar and Fishing Canoe Owners, petitioners in the High Court challenging the Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change order bringing Goa under the jurisdiction of New Delhi, have produced before the Court rail and bus tickets to raise their point that Pune is indeed an accessible destination from Goa.
In a reply to the State government's affidavit which, among other things, had stressed that Pune was an inconvenient location, the Society has said that one can travel to Pune by spending as little as `350-500, whereas Delhi will be unaffordable because of the costs involved.
"In the rejoinder we have placed rail and bus tickets to show that it costs only `350 to `500 one way and takes only one day. Delhi will be simply out of reach for us," Abhijit Prabhudesai told The Goan.
Prabhudesai and his group of activists who are battling several cases in the NGT including a challenge to the environmental clearance granted to the Mopa Airport, successfully challenged the environmental clearance granted the the Mormugao Port Trust to carry out capital dredging to deepen the approach channel at the Port. It was their case that secured a public hearing, which in turn gave rise to Goa Against Coal.
He revealed that in their rejoinder they have also suggested several locations where the circuit bench of the National Green Tribunal could be housed including the South Goa Collectorate building which they said has space on different floors including the ground floor and the third floor on the North West and North East wings of the complex.
He hoped that the stay on hearing cases at the NGT would be ended soon as the any further delay in hearing of the cases could result in denial of justice.
"We're hoping that by the next hearing on October 3, the hearings can resume," Prabhudesai said.
The High Court on Monday asked the government how much time it would take to locate a place for setting up a circuit bench of the Western Zone of the NGT in Goa.
The State government has maintained that both the locations suggested viz. The Spaces building in Patto and the District Court premises were unavailable to house the NGT's circuit bench.
