20 hours ago
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The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has told the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that it is not liable to wage compensation to owners of cultivation onshore arsenic the May 2025 landslide that occurred successful Shimla was an 'Act of God.'
The NHAI submitted its reply against the plea filed successful January, claiming that the dense operation enactment being undertaken by the authorization and its concessionaire, without decently strengthening a slope, had damaged cultivation onshore successful Shimla agrarian tehsil, causing landslides.
The plea was filed by immoderate onshore owners against the NHAI and its agencies progressive successful widening a roadworthy for a four-lane task successful Shakral colony to Dhalli (Kaithlighat-Dhalli Section of NH-5). In effect to the plea, the NGT had sought replies from the authorities.
In its reply oregon counter-affidavit dated May 18, the NHAI said that the applicants highlighted an incidental that occurred connected May 25 erstwhile a retaining partition constructed by its bureau was damaged.
"The incidental was caused solely owed to earthy calamity [Act of God/Vis Major]. Heavy rainfall occurred successful Himachal Pradesh from precocious May 2025 onwards, triggering wide and large-scale landslides, including successful areas wherever nary operation oregon task of immoderate quality was being undertaken," the reply said.
It said that the incident, being an Act of God, was supported by the IMD study and the State Government's catastrophe declaration dated September 1, 2025.
On the alleged harm to 440 trees successful a plot, a nonaccomplishment of implicit ₹32.3 lakh claimed, the NHAI urged the SDM Shimla (Rural) to inquire the Horticulture section to re-examine its study and taxable a caller field-based report.
The NHAI said that compensation, if any, cannot beryllium based connected the erroneous and inflated appraisal of the horticulture department.
"The substance requires due re-assessment earlier immoderate compensation is determined. In immoderate case, the compensation payable [if immoderate astatine all, fixed that the harm was owed to earthy calamity] shall beryllium determined successful accordance with applicable law," it said.
The NHAI said its task concessionaire, M/s Gawar Shimla Highway Pvt. Ltd, had besides conducted its ain appraisal of the nonaccomplishment and claimed that the horticulture department's harm appraisal study was "incorrect" arsenic lone astir 40 pome trees existed connected the affected land.
The counter-affidavit besides rejected the assertion for harm to the land, saying it was successful the process of being acquired for the road task nether the National Highways Act, for which a gazette notification had been issued connected January 15 this year.
"Upon finalisation of the award, the compensation shall beryllium duly disbursed to the entitled onshore owners successful accordance with law," the reply said.
It said that the applicants sought biology compensation without establishing "any circumstantial usurpation of the conditions of biology clearance oregon wood clearance by NHAI/concessionaire; immoderate enactment oregon omission connected the portion of NHAI/concessionaire that contributed to oregon caused the landslide."
According to the reply, NHAI was not liable for the alleged harm erstwhile it was caused solely and exclusively by an bonzer earthy lawsuit which could not person been reasonably anticipated oregon prevented by quality foresight, attraction and skill.
"It is nary much res integra that the 'no-fault' oregon 'strict liability' rule nether biology instrumentality applies to 'hazardous activities' of industry. Highway construction, which is simply a nationalist infrastructure task undertaken with each requisite approvals, is sustainable development, and it does not autumn wrong the class of hazardous activities attracting implicit liability successful the lack of immoderate negligence," the reply said.
It said the precautionary rule and the polluter pays rule are triggered lone wherever determination is existent biology harm caused by oregon attributable to a person's enactment oregon omission.
"Where the harm is caused solely by an Act of God oregon earthy calamity, these principles cannot beryllium invoked to fasten liability connected NHAI," the reply said.
It sought the tribunal's directions to disregard the landowners' application, arguing it was without merit and did not rise immoderate important biology question.
It besides requested the NGT to nonstop the authorities to instrumentality cognisance of the obstruction being caused by the applicants oregon locals successful restoration work.
