NGT seeks state response on quarrying near Tata cancer hospital in Kharghar
The news raises "substantial issues" relating to compliance with environmental norms and implementation of the provisions of scheduled enactments, the bench comprising chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava, expert members Dr A Senthil Vel and Dr Afroz Ahmad, stated during the hearing. The principal bench based in New Delhi transferred the case to the tribunal's western zonal bench in Pune and listed it for the next hearing on Sept 17.
The principal bench observed that the news items further state activists have questioned how the authorities could allow such blasting in the hills, especially when it leads to dangerous dust clouds spreading into the Tata hospital premises and also into nearby residential areas.
The reports were based on the response received by environment watchdog NatConnect Foundation via the Right to Information (RTI) Act from the Raigad district administration that no permissions were issued for the quarry.
The principal bench directed the Raigad district collector, Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, the state directorate of geology and mining, and Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) to file their response affidavits before the western zonal bench at least one week before the next hearing.
You Can Also Check:
Mumbai AQI
|
Weather in Mumbai
|
Bank Holidays in Mumbai
|
Public Holidays in Mumbai
NatConnect Foundation director B N Kumar expressed his gratitude to the NGT for taking up the case. He expressed hope that accountability would be fixed for not checking the violation.
"The quarrying must stop as it plays with the lives of cancer patients who already suffer from very low immunity. Moreover, the dust is the biggest enemy of the medical equipment that costs crores of rupees," Kumar said.
"Experts have warned that the continuous quarrying has loosened the soil in the surrounding hills, increasing the chances of landslides in the area," the NGT noted. According to NGT, the news reports said the quarry could also pose a serious threat to both the tunnel construction and the safety of nearby residents and institutions.
Jyoti Nadkarni, convenor of Kharghar Hill and Wetland Forum, welcoming NGT proceedings, said, "The RTI response is part of the official records of the district administration which should have checked the indiscriminate quarrying on for several months now."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
an hour ago
- Scroll.in
In Delhi's prisons, the mental health of inmates is a footnote
India's prisons are among the harshest in the world. They are overcrowded, with unhygienic living conditions and poor healthcare that can endanger the lives of inmates. The right to healthcare, including mental healthcare, is fundamental, enshrined in Indian constitutional law and international human rights conventions to which India is a signatory. However, despite extensive legal safeguards and judicial directives, India's prisons routinely neglect the mental wellbeing of inmates – to the detriment of jails as well as the criminal justice system. The mental health concerns of prisoners are widespread. Some enter prisons with existing conditions, often untreated, while others develop mental health issues during their incarceration. Delhi's Tihar Jail – India's largest correctional facility, has long struggled to address the mental health needs of its inmates. There are 19,000 inmates across Delhi's three prison complexes – Tihar (nine jails), Mandoli (six), and Rohini (one). The responses by jail hospitals to right to information applications I filed in April indicated significant lapses in procedural compliance, staffing, training and infrastructure. Ensuring the mental wellbeing of inmates is not merely a legal obligation, but is essential for rehabilitation and reducing the tendency of inmates to relapse into criminal activity. No oversight mechanisms The Central Jail Hospital at Tihar, which covers the Tihar and Rohini complexes, provided information for Central Jails 1 to 10, while the Mandoli Jail Hospital submitted responses for Central Jails 11 to 16. The information provided included the number of prisoners with mental illness and the implementation of mental healthcare provisions. As of September 2024, there were 749 inmates with mental illnesses in these three prison complexes, according to a response to a previous RTI application dated August 2024. By May, the number had increased by 100. In the responses dated May 1, Tihar Jail Hospital reported 653 undertrial prisoners with mental illness and 54 convicted prisoners with mental illness. Mandoli Jail Hospital had 142 inmates being treated for mental illness. Under Section 103 of the Mental Healthcare Act, 2017, these prisoners should have been transferred to a psychiatric ward in the medical wing or a mental health establishment within the prison. But only 36 of these prisoners had been shifted, Tihar and Mandoli Jail Hospitals said in their responses. The Tihar Jail Hospital said that only 'actively symptomatic inmates with severe mental illness' are transferred to the psychiatric ward while other inmates with 'common mental illness' and those with 'severe mental illness but stable on medications' are given outpatient treatment in their respective jails. There was no explanation about the criteria used to classify mental illnesses as 'common' or 'severe'. This affects the medical treatment prisoners receive. In psychiatric wards, psychiatrists conduct daily visits but in jails, there are typically weekly visits, said the replies. Oversight mechanisms, too, are virtually absent. There is no Mental Health Review Board to visit and inspect Delhi's prison complexes, though it is legally required. The Mental Healthcare Act says state governments must set up a Mental Health Review Board based on the number of mental health establishments, patients and population in a district or group of districts. Without a review board, the legal aspects of the mental health of prisoners are simply not being enforced. According to the responses by Tihar and Mandoli Jail Hospitals, there had been no inspections of Delhi's jails, which had also not submitted quarterly reports to the nonexistent board. Similarly, Section 103(3) of the Mental Healthcare Act requires prison medical officers to send quarterly reports to the Mental Health Review Boards certifying that there are no prisoners with mental illness in the jail. Section 103(4) empowers the Mental Health Review Boards to inspect prisons and investigate why inmates with mental illnesses have not been transferred to the psychiatric ward. The Board can question prison medical officers on their decisions. These failures are due to the inaction of the Delhi State Mental Health Authority, which is responsible for constituting Mental Health Review Boards. Section 103 of the Mental Healthcare Act mandates prisons to register their mental health establishments with the State Mental Health Authority. But, again, none of the three mental health establishments in Delhi's prisons are registered. The Delhi government has failed to act despite repeated judicial orders, including a directive issued in December 2024 by the Delhi High Court to appoint members of the Delhi State Mental Health Authority. Since the enforcement of the Mental Healthcare Act in 2018, such court directives have become routine – as has the government's failure to comply. Staff shortage Non-compliance, coupled with a severe shortage of mental health professionals, risks endangering the lives of inmates. The 2016 Model Prison Manual says that there must be one psychologist or counsellor for every 500 inmates, which means Delhi's jails need at least 38 mental health professionals for emotional and psychological support. But there are only four full-time psychiatrists posted across 16 jails, out of a total of 10 sanctioned positions, said the Tihar and Mandoli Jail Hospitals. Though jail authorities claimed that 'regular counsellors are posted in each jail', they did not disclose specific numbers or other details. This shortage mirrors a national crisis. The India Justice Report, 2025, states that as of 2022, there were only 69 psychiatrists or psychologists sanctioned across India's 1,330 prisons, with just 25 appointments made. That equals one mental health professional per 22,929 inmates. The report found that twenty-five of India's 36 states and Union Territories have not sanctioned a single psychologist or psychiatrist within their correctional staff. At the same time, the number of prisoners officially diagnosed with mental illnesses nationwide nearly doubled between 2012 and 2022, as per the report. Prison conditions, including overcrowding and isolation, make inmates especially vulnerable to mental health issues. Due to a severe shortage of mental health professionals, many inmates likely remain undiagnosed, suggesting that the true number is higher than the reported figures. There are infrastructural deficits as well. The Mental Healthcare (Rights of Persons with Mental Illness) Rules, 2018, prescribe minimum standards and procedures for mental healthcare services in prisons. The schedule to Rule 11, which is titled 'Minimum standards and procedures for mental healthcare services in prisons', mandates telemedicine services and a list of 29 antipsychotic medicines. But telemedicine facilities, which could have eased the burden on limited resources, are non-existent across all three prison complexes in Delhi. 'Some' of the necessary medicines are available in Mandoli while nine are reportedly unavailable in Tihar and Rohini, said the replies by the Tihar and Mandoli Jail Hospitals. Prisons also rely on non-clinical alternatives, such yoga, meditation and group counselling, as outlined in the National Human Rights Commission Advisory on the Rights of Prisoners, 2020. They are also supposed to hold awareness classes and stress management workshops in accordance with a 2021 Ministry of Home Affairs Advisory on the mental health needs of inmates. But, again, implementation is inconsistent across Delhi's jails. In the responses, Central Jails 1, 3-4, 7-9, 14 and 16 did not specify the number of sessions conducted – these varied from daily to weekly to monthly. Two jails provided numbers. Central Jail 12 reported 76 sessions on yoga, meditation, and group counselling in a month, while Central Jail 5 said it had conducted 59 sessions. But only a comprehensive evaluation can assess how effective these sessions were. The judiciary has repeatedly intervened to address these concerns. In 2023, the Delhi High Court highlighted the inadequacy of the prison system in addressing the mental health needs of inmates. The Court acknowledged that incarceration could lead to depression and other emotional disturbances. It directed prison authorities to promptly inform the psychiatrist posted in the facility if any inmate exhibits symptoms of mental distress and to ensure that counselling and therapy are provided. A few years earlier, the Supreme Court in 2018 issued similar directions to all state governments. The apex court also directed medical officers in jails to receive training in providing basic and emergency mental healthcare. But none of the Tihar jails had conducted these trainings, according to the RTI response. On May 2, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued another advisory requiring prisons to provide psychiatric and psychological services to inmates. Legal frameworks and judicial precedents are clear that although incarceration limits an individual's liberty, their human rights, including the right to mental healthcare, remain intact. The reality in Delhi's prison complexes falls short of this.
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
NGT takes suo motu cognisance of illegal quarrying behind ACTREC
Mumbai: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on August 4, took suo motu cognisance of the alleged illegal quarrying behind the Tata Memorial Hospital's Advanced Centre for Treatment and Education in Cancer (ACTREC) in Navi Mumbai. The NGT took up the matter at its own initiative following news reports, triggered by complaints from residents, activists and the hospital authorities. New Delhi, India - May 31, 2016: General View of National Green Tribunal in New Delhi , India, on Tuesday, May 31, 2016. (Photo by Arvind Yadav/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times) The principal bench of the NGT in Delhi said that the quarrying matter suggests that it violated the Maharashtra Minor Mineral Rules, the Mineral Conservation and Development Rules, and the Environment (Protection) Act. The NGT directed the Raigad collector, the state pollution control board, the Nagpur directorate of geology and mining, and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) to respond to them in an affidavit within a week. The case was then forwarded to the Pune western bench and scheduled for hearing on September 17. The director of ACTREC, Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, had written to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on July 10 highlighting the health hazards of the quarry blasting on the northwestern hill adjacent to the hospital. In his letter, Chaturvedi said, 'The dust blankets the residential areas and infiltrates the sterile treatment zones within the hospital. This poses an acute threat to the immunocompromised patients undergoing life-saving treatment such as bone marrow transplant and proton therapy.' The letter added that the hospital's equipment was under constant risk of contamination due to airborne particulate matter. Founder of the NatConnect foundation, a not-for-profit company campaigning for the issues of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), BN Kumar, said, 'The quarrying work could also jeopardise the construction work for the Kharghar-Turbhe tunnel.' According to the aerial measurements, the quarrying stretch extends for more than half a kilometer along a stretch where dozens of trucks travel daily. Responding to a Right to Information query by Kumar in July, the NMMC and the Raigad collector confirmed that they had not given any permissions for the quarrying works at the eco-sensitive location. The convenor of the Kharghar Wetlands and Hills forum, Jyoti Nadkarni, raised concerns for the people who will be travelling through the tunnel. 'There cannot be a quarrying activity taking place close to a tunnel. The blasting is so loud that when people pass through it, one can feel the earth shaking,' said Nadkarni. She added that such stone work should not take place in the monsoon because it could destabilise the land and even cause landslides.
Time of India
10 hours ago
- Time of India
Telangana high court declines plea for termination of 28-week twin pregnancy of minor citing health risk
Hyderabad: The Telangana high court on Monday refused to permit medical termination of the pregnancy of a minor girl carrying twins at an advanced gestational stage, citing medical opinion. Justice Nagesh Bheemapaka was hearing a writ petition filed by the mother of the minor girl, seeking a direction to Niloufer Hospital to constitute a medical board and terminate the pregnancy under section 3(2)(b) of the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021. The petitioner's daughter was found to be 28 weeks pregnant with one twin and 26 weeks with the other, according to a medical report dated July 22, 2025. Acting on an earlier court order, a medical board was constituted and its report submitted to the court. You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad After considering the report, the judge declined to grant permission for termination of pregnancy, observing that the gestational period had crossed the statutory limit and termination at this stage was not medically advised. The court directed the medical superintendent of Niloufer Hospital to provide all necessary medical care to the girl, not discharge her until delivery, and ensure her safety. The women and child welfare department was also told to extend support through the Sakhi Centre, with police assistance if needed. The matter will be heard again on October 29.
