In a recent direction, the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB), in exercise of the powers conferred by the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, have halted all sorts of construction work of Debrupayan Nagar, a housing project under the banner of Debrupayan Housing Finance Limited. The Board has also imposed a direction to stop all kinds of hoarding and advertisements of the housing complex, which were put up to invite the public to participate in the project.

The proposed township is located by the side of Barrackpore-Dum Dum Expressway comprising the lands of three Mouzas, namely, Natagarh, Mohishpota and Jugberia under Bilkanda Gram Panchayat No.1, Police Station Ghola in the district of 24 Parganas (N). Stretching over a vast land area of 211 bighas, the township is said to include an administrative building, community hall, bank and post office building, Ayurvedic Research Park with Training Institute, electric transformer station, artificial water body for fire fighting etc. The construction work of such a vast project, however, had commenced without any prior permission from the concerned authorities.

As per provisions of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 all new intending projects (developmental and industrial) is required to obtain "Consent to Establish" (popularly termed as NOC) from the State Pollution Control Board. Neither had the developer of Debrupayan Nagar obtained any consent from the State Board as required by the Water Act, nor did he obtain any land conversion certificate from the District Land & Land Reforms Department. Instead the project had commenced by filling up a wetland with flyash from CESC.

Pertaining to this highly unlawful act, the Office of the District Land & Land Reforms, 24 Parganas (N) and the Additional District Magistrate, 24 Parganas (N) had requested the State Board to take immediate steps. Taking all these matters in to consideration, WBPCB has ordered this housing project with a work stoppage on environmental grounds. The developer of the housing project can restart their construction work only after the State Board grants an environmental clearance.

Thereafter, Hon’ble Justice Gitesh Ranjan Bhattacharjee, Chairman, Pollution Control Appellate Authority (West Bengal), passed an order, along with two other members, namely, Prof. Pinaki Ranjan Bhattacharya, Head of the Chemical Engineering Dept., Jadavpur University and Prof. Dipak Kumar Bhattacharya, Emeritus Fellow of the All India Council of Technical Education, New Delhi. The order stated that the direction of WBPCB was confirmed. Debrupayan Housing Finance Ltd. was directed not to proceed further with the construction of township without prior approval of WBPCB and the District Authority. Besides the District Magistrate, the Superintendent of Police and WBPCB were directed to keep a proper vigil so that the developer of the site may not start any activity, which violates the legal order. In the larger interest of the public, the Housing Development Corporation was directed to prohibit advertisements for undertaking any contemplated project for public participation, before obtaining clearance from the concerned authorities. WBPCB was asked to give necessary publicity of the orders of the Appellate Authority and the State Board, so that innocent people are not deceived by the puffery of the proposed township.

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