Decide interim aid in 2 months: SC to NGT over Baghjan oil spill

Fixing interim compensation to be paid preferably within two months to nearly 9000 displaced people, the Court directed the green tribunal to adjudicate on the final compensation to be paid to the affected people and work out modalities for its disbursal.

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the National Green Tribunal to decide on environment restoration and compensation to people displaced due to the massive blowout at Oil India Limited’s Baghjan oil well in Assam in May 2020.

OIL represented by senior advocate Parag Tripathi said that the company had already paid ₹102 crore towards interim compensation. (HT)

Fixing interim compensation to be paid preferably within two months to nearly 9000 displaced people, the Court directed the green tribunal to adjudicate on the final compensation to be paid to the affected people and work out modalities for its disbursal.

With an expert committee constituted by the top court having submitted its final report in December 2021, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud said, “It will be appropriate to remit the matter back to NGT that shall now take up the proceedings in the light of the report of the expert committee constituted by this Court.”

OIL represented by senior advocate Parag Tripathi said that the company had already paid ₹102 crore towards interim compensation. The affected victims who had filed individual applications asked the Court that NGT should distinguish between interim compensation and the final compensation to be worked out at the end.

The bench said, “We entrust the NGT to issue appropriate directions for adjudication of final compensation and its disbursal. The disbursement of interim compensation shall be done preferably within 2 months.”

The order came on a petition filed by activist Bonani Kakkar who had approached the top court against an NGT order of June 2020 constituting three separate committees with regard to compensation apportionment, biodiversity restoration plan, fixing of responsibility for non-compliance with statutory provisions and safety protocols. The blast caused extensive damage to the nearby wetlands and biodiversity of Dibru-Saikhowa national park.

The NGT had on Kakkar’s petition constituted a 10-member committee headed by chief secretary of Assam, drawing members from state and central government departments along with managing director of Oil India Limited (OIL) to provide a biodiversity restoration roadmap and assessment of damage in six months. Not satisfied by dominating presence of public servants and OIL representative in the committee, Kakker had approached the top court for constituting a panel of independent experts to undertake the damage assessment exercise.

The bench, also comprising justices V Ramasubramanian and JB Pardiwala said, “The NGT shall proceed ahead on the basis of expert committee of this Court without awaiting the reports of the other two committees...The other 2 committees shall proceed with their tasks, Pendency of proceedings before NGT will not affect disbursal of compensation.”

The Baghjan-5 oil well blow-out occurred on May 27, 2020 following which an explosion occurred resulting in extensive damage and destruction to flora and fauna and displacement of several villagers in the area.

The top court appointed justice (Retd) BP Katakey and included independent experts Ritesh Kumar – director, Wetlands International (South Asia), Qamar Qureshi - professor, Wildlife Institute of India, GS Dang – former deputy director of Indian Institute of Petroleum (Dehradun) and soil expert Bedanga Bordoloi to assess the environmental damage and restoration plan.

The committee report suggested the compensation payable by OIL for causing loss to environment and future work on restoration plan.

As a result of the explosion, the Justice Katakey panel found drastic decline in water oxygen level leading to a high mortality rate of marine life in the Maguri-Motapung wetland, flora and fauna of the national park, and biosphere reserve which is home to the endangered Gangetic dolphins and a variety of mammals and bird species. The panel told NGT that OIL did not carry out a biodiversity impact assessment before operating the oil well.

The Assam government told the top court that the final report of the committee had fixed the compensation payable at ₹1200 crore of which ₹432 crore was the liability to be shared by the state government. “How can state be burdened when it is itself the victim. Going by the ‘polluter pays’ principle, the OIL has to pay for the damage,” said Nalin Kohli, senior additional advocate general of Assam. The bench said that the apportionment of compensation will also be decided by the NGT.

Three lives were lost in the incident which required OIL to arrange relief camps for 9000 persons at a cost of ₹11.17 crore. In addition, the company has paid a one-time compensation of ₹30,000 to the 3000 affected families besides compensation of ₹20 lakh each to 11 families whose houses were burnt. By a letter issued in December 2020, the OIL has accepted its liability to pay a further amount of ₹68.05 crore to 600 affected families who sustained serious or total damage to their houses.