HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad High Court on Wednesday stayed an order granted by the NGT at Chennai to constitute an independent commission to ascertain whether the first phase of the Ranga Reddy-Palamuru Lift Irrigation Scheme was for the purpose of supplying drinking water or for irrigation.
The state government in its appeal contended that the tribunal cannot pass the order constituting the commission in the absence of an expert member on the bench of the tribunal. The counsel appearing for the applicant B. Harshvardhan Reddy contended before the High Court on Wednesday that the state government’s petition was not maintainable as Section 22 of the NGT Act provides for an appeal before the Supreme Court and the state government without exhausting the remedies approached the High Court.
The bench stayed the order of the NGT but made it clear that this interim order will not preclude the NGT from passing a similar order when the expert member is present in the bench.
