DARSHAN GRANITES Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner, a registered partnership firm, has been granted a N.O.C by the 2nd respondent for conducting quarrying operations in respect of 1.5777 hectares of Government puramboke land. One among the conditions in Ext.P1 N.O.C is that Environmental Clearance (E.C) has to be obtained and submitted within six months. Ext.P5 application preferred by the petitioner for issuance of E.C is still under process and time was being extended for production of E.C. by the 2 nd respondent. The grievance of the petitioner is that while extending the time limit in the last occasion, vide Ext.P13, the petitioner has been called upon to pay security deposit and lease rent. By Ext.P14, there is a slight modification to Ext.P13, but the pre-condition of security deposit and lease rent has been retained. The contention urged by the learned counsel for the petitioner is that the demand for security deposit and lease rent, acting upon Ext.P15 Government Order, is illegal, inasmuch as such condition was not incorporated at the time of granting the original N.O.C. Ext.P15 is dtd. 28/1/2021, whereas Ext.P1 N.O.C has been granted in the year 2018. Therefore, acting upon Ext.P15, no condition can be imposed, is the first submission made. The second submission is that there is no provision in the Kerala Minor Mineral Concession Rules ('K.M.M.C Rules', for short) in terms of Rule 27(2)(d) to impose a condition for security deposit or lease rent, while granting N.O.C.

(2.) Learned Senior Government Pleader would submit that the N.O.C was granted originally in the year 2018 and for a period of seven years, there was no mining activity going on for want of E.C to be obtained by the petitioner. According to the leaned Senior Government Pleader, the land was remaining idle, without deriving any benefit to the Government, for the past seven years.

(3.) Having heard the learned counsel appearing for the respective parties, this Court finds little merit in the case advanced by the petitioner. The land in question is admittedly Government puramboke land, over which, the petitioner cannot stake any claim, unless permitted. It may be true that while granting Ext.P1 N.O.C in the year 2018, no condition would have been imposed by the Government as regards security deposit or lease rent. It also remains a fact that, more than seven years had elapsed from the date of grant of N.O.C, vide Ext.P1. There is no quarrel that the quarrying operations have not been commenced on the premises for the past seven years for want of E.C to be obtained by the petitioner. By any reckoning, the Government is not at fault for the property remaining idle for the past seven years.