Ludhiana gas leak: NGT orders ₹20 lakhs compensation for kin of 11 deceased

The National Green Tribunal on Tuesday directed the Ludhiana district magistrate (DM) to pay ₹20 lakh each to kin of the 11 persons who died in the gas leak incident in Ludhiana's Giaspur locality on April 30..The Tribunal took up the matter on its own motion in light of a media report of death of 11 persons, including three minors. The State government had announced compensation of ₹2 lakhs to kind of the deceased..A bench of Justices Adarsh Kumar Goel and Sudhir Agarwal, and expert member Prof. A Senthil Veil recollected that in the recent past, in cases of deaths and injuries on account of environmental law violations by the State and private entities, victims are normally entitles to compensation at the rate of ₹20 lakhs in case of death.."The Tribunal has dealt with incidents of deaths and injuries on account of violation of environmental norms by State and private entities in recent past and held that in such cases victims are normally entitled to compensation at the rate of Rs. 20 lakhs in case of death and at varying rates in case of injuries depending upon the extent of injuries," the Tribunal said..The NGT said that the State has to pay compensation in absence of identified private operators with liberty to recover the same from the ones found responsible and added that the compensation has to be paid within a month..Additionally, in light of news reports suggesting that hydrogen sulphide leakage led to the incident, the Tribunal set up an eight member fact-finding joint Committee to be headed by Chairman, Punjab State Pollution Control Board (PCB). Other members of the Committee will be Regional Director (North), Central Pollution Control Board(CPCB), Industrial Toxicology Research Centre (ITRC), Lucknow, nominee of Director, PGI Chandigarh, nominee of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State PCB, District Magistrate, Ludhiana and Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Ludhiana.It directed the Committee to submit its report to the Tribunal by June 30, 2023..Further, it directed the Ludhiana DM to ensure the payment of compensation within a month, deducting the amounts, if any, paid already..[Read Order]