New Delhi:
The National Green Tribunal today ordered closure of 12 eating joints in Delhi's upmarket Hauz Khas area for not having applied for consent to operate till date since its last year's order directing them to do so after complying with all the norms.
A bench headed by justices P Jyothimani and M S Nambiar gave the restaurants a week's time to apply for consent to operate (CTO) and directed Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) to immediately take a decision on their applications on receiving them.
"The 12 restaurants that have not applied for CTO shall not operate from today onwards. They can apply for CTO within a period of one week. On receiving their applications, the DPCC is directed to immediately take a decision to give them CTO or not," the tribunal said.
The NGT also directed DPCC to decide on merit, within two weeks, the applications for CTO of 12 other eateries that are pending with it and said that if these restaurants do not get consent they shall cease to operate.
The tribunal directed the DPCC to file a status report regarding compliance of the NGT's September 25, 2013, order before the next date of hearing on February 6.
After closing all eating joints in Hauz Khas for five days that were functioning without consent of the DPCC and for discharging untreated waste, the tribunal on September 25 had granted them conditional approval to reopen.
It had allowed only those restaurants to open which had installed Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs) or were in the process of installing them, but clarified that the permission to operate would be subject to final decision of the DPCC which would verify if the ETPs are functioning properly.
DPCC, meanwhile, submitted a report of the committee constituted by the NGT to ensure as well as suggest measures for proper functioning of the restaurants and hotels in Delhi.
The NGT directed the DPCC to ensure wide publication of the panel's report in order to invite views of the eateries which would be affected by it.
During the day's proceedings, the DPCC informed the NGT that out the 32 eating joints in Hauz Khas which were allowed by the tribunal to operate, eight applied for and have been granted CTO, applications for CTO of 12 others are pending with it and 12 have not applied till date.
Some of those eateries which have not applied for CTO till date and functioning without it sought a week's time to apply and hoped that they be not shut down in the interim.
The tribunal, however, refused to grant the relief sought by them saying, "We will not give any more time. This is total disobedience. If others are following (the orders of NGT), why should you be given preferential treatment? Till you file the application, you will be shut down."
"DPCC needs to give CTO for you to operate. You can't operate without that. There can't be lawlessness," the bench said.