MAHENDRA SINGH Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This case has been nominated to this Court by orders of the Hon'ble Chief Justice (under Chapter VIII Rule 3 of the Allahabad High Court Rules, as applicable to the Uttarakhand High Court), for a third opinion since there was a difference of opinion on a point, between the two learned Judges of the Division Bench, while hearing an application.

(2.) A Public Interest Litigation (WPPIL No. 112 of 2015 i.e the present writ petition) was filed before this Court, where the petitioner alleged that the industrial waste of respondent no. 4 (the polluting industry) was seeping into the adjoining land of his school and has swept the playgrounds of the school as well as its agricultural land. The water and the waste, it was alleged, are poisonous and the act of the respondent is in violation of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

(3.) The Division Bench (of Hon'ble Justice Rajiv Sharma, J. and Hon'ble Justice Lok Pal Singh, J.), while hearing the matter chose to enlarge the scope of the petition, and took a judicial notice of the fact that is there is not only water pollution but air pollution as well in the State, which is not being checked by the authorities. The petition was then disposed of by the Court by giving a number of directions to the State Authorities. For our purposes, what is relevant here is the direction contained in para (i), which is regarding noise pollution and the permissible sound limits. Direction (i) reads as under:-