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DEMOCRATIC YOUTH FEDERATION OF INDIA v.UNION OF INDIA

Country/Territory
India
Type of court
National - higher court
Date
Apr 23, 2012
Source
UNEP, InforMEA
Court name
Supreme Court of India
Judge
Kumar, S.
Patnaik, A.K.
Language
English
Subject
Waste & hazardous substances
Keyword
Pesticides Hazardous substances
Abstract
The court, acting on a writ petition filed by the Democratic Youth Federation of India, banned the production and sale of endosulfan in the country. It directed the statutory authorities to freeze the production licences granted to the manufacturers till further orders. In the meantime, it appointed the committee to suggest ways and means for clearing the existing stock, which included the quantity meant for exports and measures for disposal of remaining material. The court had allowed the export of endosulfan in an attempt to get rid of the stocks of the pesticides lying in the country. As per the court’s order, 1090.596 tonne of technical grade endosulfan has been exported. The court was informed that 1,300 KL of endosulfan formulation still remained in the stock with the companies. The present order came after the Pesticides Manufacturers and Formulators Association of India (PMFAI) pleaded with the court that they be allowed to manufacture endosulfan with the raw material that remains with the companies. The counsel for the PMFAI, Harish Salve, said that since India was already a signatory to the Stockholm Convention and had agreed to dispose of the pesticide, manufacture of the pesticide should be allowed and phase out be carried out according to the Convention The Supreme Court has asked the Centre to submit a disposal plan for the raw material used to manufacture endosulfan. The centre has also been asked to ascertain the exact quantity of raw material available with the three Endosulfan manufacturers—Hindustan Insecticides Limited, Excel Crop Care and Coromandel International Limited. The deadline for the Centre is July 23, 2012.
Full text
COU-159194.pdf