The Kerala High Court has ruled that NHAI concessionaires holding valid work orders issued before March 21, 2024, are not required to obtain separate Environmental Clearance (EC) for the extraction, sourcing, or borrowing of ordinary earth for linear projects such as roads and pipelines.
The division bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran and Justice M B Snehalatha passed the order while addressing an intra-court reference.
Earlier, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) had exempted the extraction of ordinary earth for linear projects from EC requirements through notifications dated March 28, 2020, and August 30, 2023. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) struck down this exemption, and the Supreme Court, in Noble M Paikada v Union of India, upheld the NGT’s decision.
Subsequently, the Supreme Court issued a clarificatory order on May 15, 2024, stating that work orders issued before March 21, 2024, could continue without obtaining a fresh EC.
The Kerala High Court examined whether this clarification applied to concessionaires engaged in earth extraction for linear projects and whether such permission depended on specific provisions in the work orders. The Court observed that if the Supreme Court had intended to limit the exemption to NHAI alone, it would not have included concessionaires in its clarification. It further noted that the definition or format of a work order depends on the facts of each case.
While permitting concessionaires to proceed, the Bench referenced its earlier ruling in Pradeep Kumar P v State of Kerala, which emphasised transparency and environmental safeguards.
NHAI counsel informed the Court that a new notification dated March 17, 2025, has introduced Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and safeguards for linear projects to ensure full compliance with the Supreme Court judgment. The Bench recorded this submission, noting that the safeguards would apply to ongoing and future projects.
(With LiveLaw inputs)
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