Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court has taken a tough stand regarding the conservation of Rajasthan’s famous Sambhar Lake. The High Court has considered the signing of an MoU for a solar plant in the lake area without approval and the concealment of this information from the court as “contempt of court.” A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Justice Sangeeta Sharma has taken suo motu cognizance of the contempt in this matter against the MD of Hindustan Salts and the CEO of SJVN Green Energy, Ajay Kumar Singh, as well as the new CEO.
The court has issued strict instructions to these officials. All concerned officers must appear in person on February 11th. They must explain to the court why they should not be punished for contempt of court for disobeying court orders.
What is the whole controversy?
Senior advocate RB Mathur, the amicus curiae in the case, told the court that the court had already imposed an interim stay on the installation of solar power plants at Sambhar Lake to protect its ecology. Despite this:
- Secret MoU: Hindustan Salts Limited secretly signed an MoU with SJVN Green Energy, a subsidiary of the Government of India, to set up a solar plant there in a phased manner.
- Attempt of illegal construction: Petitioner Dinesh Kumawat told the court through PIL that JCB, truck and construction material have reached the spot and efforts are underway to construct a permanent structure there.
Judge lashed out at the disregard of court orders
Expressing displeasure, the division bench said that when on December 17 itself the local police and SP were instructed to remove the construction material and submit a report, then signing the MoU after that is a direct challenge to the court.
The Importance of Sambhar Lake: Sambhar Lake is not only India’s largest saltwater lake, but it is also a Ramsar site. Large-scale construction, such as solar plants, is considered a major threat to its biodiversity and migratory birds (especially flamingos).
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