The Madras High Court Bench in Madurai directed notice to Vetrivel Explosives at T. Murangapatti in Tiruchi district, returnable in four weeks | Photo Credit: R_ASHOK more-in The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Wednesday granted an interim injunction against the restoration of a ‘No Objection Certificate’ by the Tiruchi District Revenue Officer to an explosives factory in Tiruchi. A division bench of Justices C.T. Selvam and A.M. Basheer Ahamed, hearing a public interest litigation petition, directed notice to Vetrivel Explosives, returnable in four weeks. A major blast at the factory in 2016 had claimed 19 lives. K. Periyasamy of Tiruchi filed the PIL petition against the restoration of the NOC to the factory. He said following the accident the licence for the factory was suspended and subsequently cancelled in 2016. The factory had filed a writ petition before the High Court against the cancellation of the NOC. A single bench dismissed the plea in 2017. When the factory preferred an appeal against the order, a division bench directed survey of the land governed by the NOC. Till then, there should be no revocation of the cancelled NOC, the petitioner said. However, in 2018, the DRO restored the NOC without conducting an inquiry, which was in violation of the court’s order, he said. The petitioner contended that the factory was running without proper effluent treatment plant, causing environmental degradation at T. Murangapatti village. The petitioner further said at the time of explosion the factory did not have a valid NOC, and in spite of this a licence was granted. Only four persons should have been deployed at the factory as per the licensing condition, but 19 people perished in the explosion. Safety standards were clearly violated, he claimed and sought an injunction against the NOC granted to the factory.

Stay updated with all the Latest Madurai headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.