New Delhi: Terming the National Environment Appellate Authority (NEAA) a defunct organisation, the Delhi High Court Friday pointed out it did not have a head despite several orders.
Expressing displeasure over the sorry state of affairs in NEAA, a division bench comprising of Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice S. Muralidhar said: "It (NEAA) is the most non-functional tribunal we have ever came across. Despite several orders no steps have been taken by the government to appoint a chairman."
"It is a utter shame for NEAA which is running with only one member and subscribes to only one magazine. There is no website, no address... Where will the appellant go with his problem?" observed the bench while directing government to file a fresh affidavit by Nov 18 mentioning what steps it is taking to appoint a head for the eco-tribunal.
The court had in February asked the government to appoint a NEAA chairman within three months.
The NEAA was set up in 1997 by the court to lessen the burden of environment-related public interest petitions on the judicial system.
"NEAA was supposed to act as a watchdog but on the contrary it is proving to be a defunct organisation," the bench said.
Since 2000, despite several directives by the Delhi High Court, the government has failed to appoint a retired apex court judge or former high court chief justice to serve as NEAA chairman.
It was way back in 2005 that the court, following a public interest petition, had asked the government to clear proposals on the appointment of the chairman as well as technical members and reconstitute the authority within 45 days.
IANS
