The Goa State Pollution Control Board on Monday revoked its consent-to-operate permit issued to JSW group-run South West Port Limited citing “gross violations”. The authority also pulled up the Mormugao Port Trust for importing coal using mooring points without a permit or any pollution control measures.
“They [SWPL] have violated the conditions of consent from the quantity point of view,” The Indian Express quoted pollution board chief Ganesh Shetgaonkar as saying. The consent-to-operate permit has been revoked with immediate effect, and the firm has been asked to remove the coal from the port premises within the next 15 days, said Shetgaonkar.
A pollution board official will monitor the evacuation process. “As in the absence of valid consent to operate under the Air Act and the Water Act, SWPL cannot continue operation at berth Nos. 5A and 6A at MPT except to handle/transport the existing cargo within 15 days from the date of receipt of this order,” the board said.
The board’s decision follows its show-cause notice issued to the company on November 30, 2017.
The government-owned Mormugao Port Trust aims to increase the amount of coal imported there each year, from around 12 million tonnes now to 51 million tonnes by 2030. JSW has been a major handler of coal at Mormugao Port Trust since 2005, and activists have blamed the firm for increasing the air pollution in Vasco through the fine coal dust that rises from the port facilities.
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