Case Brief: M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (CNG Case)

Name of the Case	M.C. Mehta v. Union of India
Citation	1986 INSC 19
Date of the Judgement	17.02.1986
Petitioner	M.C. Mehta, Legal Aid Cell
Defendants	Union of India
Bench/ Judges	P.N. Bhagwati, C.J., D.P. Madon and G.L. Oza, JJ.
Statutes Involved	Constitution of India, Delhi Municipal Corporation Act 1957, Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, Factories Act 1948. and Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1957
Important Articles/ Sections	Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) - Section 133(1); Constitution of India - Article 21

FACTS

Delhi Cloth Mills Limited is a public limited company having its registered office in Delhi its runs and Enterprise called Sreeram foods and fertilizer industries and this and the price has several unit engage in manufacture of caustic soda, fluorine hydrochloric acid etc various units are all set up in a single Complex situated in approximately 76 acres and they are surrounded by siply populated Colony with approximately 2 lakh people. 

A writ petition was filed before the three judge bench Challenging the manufacture of caustic fluorine including its by products and recovery plants like so glycerine and Technical hard oil Sighting that they post a hazard to health and safety of individual however the bench allowed Shri Ram foods and fertilizer Industries to manufacture subject to condition sep out in the judgement. However, the main controversy remains whether the unit of ShriRam fertilizers we relocated to a different place. During the pendency of the petition in 1985 escape of Oleum gas from one of the units of Shri Ram Foods and fertilizers on 4th and 6 December caused serious damage not only to the environment but also to individual health. 

PROVISIONS INVOLVED

Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

Section 19(1): It empowers the state government to make a decision to declare any specific area within the state as an air pollution control area 

Section 21: It restricts the operation of industrial plants in the air pollution control area. 

Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) 

 Section 133: Deals with conditional orders for the removal of a nuisance. 

 Constitution of India

Article 21: Right to life and personal liberty

Delhi Municipal Corporation Act 1957

Section 430: It deals with the suspension and revocation of licenses and written permission

Factories Act 1948

Section 40: It focuses on the safety of buildings and machinery within factories.

Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1957

Section 25: It focuses on restrictions on new outlets and discharges of sewage.

LEGAL ISSUES

The legal issues that were to be determined by the court are:

1. Whether Shriram Foods and Fertilizers be allowed to continue their operation, if so, then subject to what conditions. 
2. Whether the recommendations of the Manmohan Singh committee to adopt adequate protection measures have been followed by Shri Ram Foods and Fertilizers?
3. Whether the order released by the Inspector of factories,

 which was the result of their dissatisfaction, was not complied with?

4.  Whether the measures adopted by the plant with sufficient as per the recommendations. 

ARGUMENTS FROM APPELLANT’S SIDE

The counsel from petitioner’s sode argued that

1. The Manmohan Singh committee was formed to look at the functioning of the Shri Ram Foods and fertilizer plant and made recommendations, if any, the committee feels necessary to ensure the safety of the local community and environment; however, they were not fully implemented.
2. Even after various orders from the Department of Labour, the issue is not resolved, and therefore, structural issues in hand, which lead to the leakage of oxygen gas. 
3. The plant should not be allowed to restart, as there was always an element of hazard or risk to the community in its operation. Chlorine is a dangerous gas, and even if utmost care is taken, the possibility of its accidental leakage cannot be ruled out. 

ARGUMENTS FROM RESPONDENT’S SIDE

The counsel from the defendant’s side argued that

1. All these recommendations in the report have been carried out by the plant, and the possible hazards to the workers and community living have been almost reduced to Nil.
2.  The Shri Ram should there would be allowed to reopen the caustic chlorine plant.
3. The management makes clear that they did not intend to restart immediately.
4. The only plants in respect of which Shri Ram Sort the permission of code to restart were the power plant and plants manufacturing vanspati and refined oil including its by product and recovery plant like so glycerine technical hard oil etc 
5.  the plant gives employment to 4000 workman and on the closure of it they will be left unemployed.
6. The learned Counsel advocated that now all the recommendations have been implemented, and the probability of leakage is almost nil; even if there is leakage, it will be a very small amount.
7. On its closure, there would be no availability of chlorine to the Delhi water supply undertaking and a short supply of downstream products. 

JUDGMENT

As per reports of Dr. Slater, one of the expert committees, the safety policies, practices, and awareness in the part of management will not be adequate, and therefore, the effectiveness and availability of the design and emergency arrangements were, to say the least, questionable in a real emergency.

 The standard of Housekeeping and training among the operational staff was not good; there was inadequate Awareness of the importance of safety devices.

The report of Manmohan Singh:

There were various drawbacks in the deficiency in the structure and design of the caustic chlorine plant, as well as in its maintenance and operations.

He made various detailed recommendations which, in the opinion of the Manmohan Singh committee, needed to be strictly carried out if the risk to the workers and the population was to be minimised.

In the Nilay Choudhary Committee Report, several recommendations were made to minimise the hazard due to possible leakage of chlorine gas.

As per the report submitted by the various committees, the court observed that there is a unanimous opinion of all the experts on:

1.  Adopting all the measures of safety and fulfilling all the requirements does not indicate total elimination of all the risks posed by the plant.
2. Very close proximity to the population, and hence it must be relocated at least 10 km away from the city.

The court urged the government to consider the seriousness of the questions on the location of toxic or hazardous industries, and a decision will have to be taken in regard to such relocation of such Industries to eliminate the risk to the community likely to arise from the operation of industries.

It was observed by the court that, as per the recommendations made by the Manmohan Singh committee and the Nilay Chaudhary committee, all the recommendations have been followed, barring one condition, which is to construct a shed on the space where cylinders are to be kept.

Supreme Court understood the risk posed by the chlorine gas as a danger to life and health of the community if it is either from the storage tank from the cylinders or from Any other point in the points of production They have come to the conclusion that the caustic fluorine plant should be allowed to be restarted by the management of freedom subject to certain stringent conditions which they proposed to specify. 

1. Loud loudspeaker should be employed all around the factory premises for giving timely warnings and issuing instructions to the people.
2.  The management shall maintain proper vigilance, ensuring that the workers working in the caustic chlorine plant where helmets, gas masks, safety belts, etc.
3.  The management of Shri Ram Food and Fertilizer will deposit a sum of 20 lakh in the court as a way of security for the payment of the compensation claim.
4.  Every worker in the caustic chlorine plant should be properly trained and instructed with regard to the functioning of the specific plant and equipment in which he or she is working
5. Detailed charts shall be placed in each department or section, or at the gate of the premises in Hindi or English, specifying the effects of chlorine gas on the human body, and what immediate treatment should be taken in case there is a leakage of chlorine gas
6. A committee shall be formed with 6 members to look after the safety arrangements in the caustic chlorine plants.
7.  The management of Shri Ram will make an Undertaking, stating that in case of any death or injury to the workman, or the people living in the surrounding area, the management will be personally responsible for payment of compensation. 

CONCLUSION

In this case, the Supreme Court answered a very challenging yet impactful questions wherein it had to decide between the right to life and possibility of risk in any industry. This judgement will always remain a cornerstone for environmental jurisprudence, underscoring the Judiciary’s proactive role in reconciling industrial growth with the fundamental right to life under Article 21.