VADUGAM VARADARAJAN Vs. STATE OF TAMILNADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been filed as a probonopublico praying for a direction to the official respondents to immediately inspect the Thandukaradu Hill area situated at Survey Field No. 176 of Pottanam Village (No. 43), Namakkal Taluk, Namakkal District and its surrounding areas and take suitable action against the Miners and Crushers in the Pottanam village and surrounding areas and to initiate appropriate remedial and preventive measures to protect the village residents and environment in the Pottanam village and surrounding areas. The case of the petitioner is that he is a resident of Pottanam village of Namakkal Taluk, wherein illegal and unauthorized quarrying and stone crushing activities are going on; that from the year 1995 onwards, the presence of quarrying and stone crushing activities appeared in Thandukaradu hill area located in Survey Field No. 176 of Pottanam Revenue Village (No. 43) and mining and crushing activities are going on either side of the mountain and these activities later progressed multifold and now quarries and crusher units operate within meters of households and at present there are eight illegal quarries and several crushing units in this hill area and on the other side of the hill within 300 meters there is another residential village called 'Salaiyur', which has elementary school, temple, bus stop, sago factory etc. and there are about 24 water bodies surrounding the said Thandukaradu hill.

(2.) It is the further case of the petitioner that the quarries and crusher units in the area operate illegally and they use explosives day and night for mining; that the stone crushers run non-stop day and night, creating noise, fly ash and heavy vibrations; that the explosions and vibrations caused damages to many houses in the village like cracks, roof breakages etc.; that the sound of explosion is so severe that the families in the village are unable to sleep at night; that fly ash and dust particles emanating from the crushers severely affect air quality and many residents suffer from respiratory and related illness and the dust gets deposited in drinking water area, wells, cattle feeding waters and also destroys the flora and fauna development. According to the petitioner, he came to know that few of the miners and crushers actually obtained permission from authorities by submitting false facts for carrying on mining and crushing work in the area.

(3.) As the original writ petition was filed without impleading the quarry/crusher owners, even though allegations are made against them, we posed a specific question to the learned counsel for the petitioner as to why the quarry/crusher owners were not made party respondents to this writ petition, so as to hear them also. Thereafter, the petitioner has filed an impleadment petition in M.P. No. 1 of 2012, seeking to bring on record Respondents 8 and 9/quarry owners as party respondents, further stating that he was able to collect the names of only these two quarry owners in spite of his best and sincere efforts. We allowed the said impleadment petition on 21.8.2012, thus bringing on record the Respondents 8 and 9.