Kharghar quarry
Credit: Special arrangement
Mumbai: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has clubbed two applications regarding an alleged illegal stone quarry operating behind the Tata Cancer Hospital at Kharghar in Navi Mumbai and scheduled a joint hearing for December 5.
The move gains significance as both CIDCO and the State Environment Department have, in separate RTI responses to NatConnect Foundation, confirmed that no permissions have been granted for the quarry’s operations.
Hearing NatConnect Director B N Kumar’s plea, the NGT’s Western Zonal Bench noted the serious concerns about dust emissions, quarry blasts and vibrations impacting cancer patients, specialised medical equipment and hospital structures at the Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC), popularly known as Tata Cancer Hospital.
Earlier in July, the NGT’s Principal Bench took suo motu cognisance of media reports based on the NatConnect Foundation and Kharghar Hill and Wetland Forum campaign. Those reports cited RTI replies obtained by Kumar from the Raigad district administration confirming the absence of any quarrying permission—prompting the Principal Bench to direct the Western Zonal Bench to take up the case.
NatConnect has since filed its application seeking immediate cessation of quarrying and crushing activities, arguing that the dust threatens sensitive radiological and research equipment, while repeated blasting has “weakened” parts of the structure. The application cites RTI information from ACTREC, which comes under the Department of Atomic Energy.
Kumar has also escalated the issue to the Prime Minister’s Office. The Centre has asked the Maharashtra government to inquire, which in turn referred the matter to the Raigad district administration.
Kumar’s application pointed to a Supreme Court ruling mandating prior environmental clearance (EC) even for mining activities below five hectares—a requirement he said has been blatantly ignored.
The Western Zonal Bench comprising Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh (Judicial Member) and Dr. Sujit Kumar Bajpayee (Expert Member) has issued notices to the Raigad District Collector and the Directorate of Geology & Mining, Maharashtra, seeking detailed responses. The tribunal said an inquiry into the quarrying activity would be initiated after receiving their submissions.
Meanwhile, NatConnect has filed another RTI application with the Raigad District Collector seeking updates on action taken so far, given that the quarry appears to be operating without any legal approvals.