A bench of Justices Sushila Karki, Govinda Upadhyaya and Jagadish Sharma Paudel issued the orders on Thursday, annulling a decision of the Department of Mines and Geology to open the Godavari area for mining and a Ministry of Industry decision to extend the license of Godavari Marble Industry till 2021. Similarly, the bench has ordered the government not to extend the lease period any further."As the writs are issued, Godavari Marble Industry should now be closed down," said Supreme Court Deputy Spokesperson Baburam Dahal, explaining the orders.
Advocate Prakash Mani Sharma and four others had filed a writ petition on behalf of Pro-Public on April 2, 2002. When the case was decided by a division bench on April 10, 2006, one of the justices dissented and the case automatically went to a bench of three justices.
Though the matter was subjudice, the government on January 7, 2011 extended the license of Godavari Marble for 10 years. Following this decision, Sharma and three other advocates filed another writ petition at the Supreme Court on August 2, 2011.
In 2013 and 2014, the court postponed 12 times the date for a final verdict. At the 13th time, a bench led by then Chief Justice Damodar Prasad Sharma asked for additional government documents.
Following these episodes, the case again went through the hearing process at the court.
The writ petition claims that the areas surrounding the site of Godavari Marble Industry are home to 330 types of butterfly, 254 types of bird, 80 types of trees and 571 types of fruit. It also maintained that the Phulchowki area, where further marble extraction is planned, is home to endangered wildlife species such as barking deer and ghoral. The Godavari valley also houses a botanical garden and a fishery research center.
The writ petition claimed that the limestone deposits in the area constitute the main food sourc for the birds and animals and tampering with the deposits has an adverse impact on biodiversity.
"The verdict has assured that the unique area of Godavari and its biodiversity will be protected for coming generations," said Advocate Sharma. "The verdict has upheld the principle that the government is the trustee of natural resources and has a duty to conserve them for the future," he added.
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