The court's decision underscores the balance between industrial development and ecological preservation, with strict compliance conditions imposed on the company.
In a significant ruling, the Bombay High Court has granted permission to Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) to proceed with the laying of its proposed ethylene dichloride and effluent pipelines through the ecologically sensitive Coastal Regulation Zone-IA (CRZ-IA) in Maharashtra, India. The judgment, delivered by a Division Bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep V. Marne on July 1, 2025, and made public on July 2, effectively disposes of three writ petitions filed by Reliance seeking clearance for the critical infrastructure project.
The court's decision came after a thorough review of the project's environmental approvals and a determination that the pipelines constitute a "public utility project." This clearance is, however, contingent upon RIL's strict compliance with all stipulated environmental conditions and court-mandated safeguards.
Reliance Industries Limited, a public limited company engaged in the exploration of petroleum products, is in the process of establishing a poly vinyl chloride (PVC) manufacturing unit at its existing petrochemical plant located in Nagothane, taluka – Roha, district – Raigad, Maharashtra in India. The proposed pipelines are integral to this expansion.
Following the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEF) gazette notification on January 18, 2019, which superseded previous CRZ regulations, Reliance commissioned an environmental impact assessment. This comprehensive report was submitted in August 2024.
Subsequently, Reliance applied for permission from the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA). On January 3, 2025, MCZMA forwarded its recommendations to the MoEF & CC in New Delhi, which, in turn, granted CRZ clearance to the project on February 12, 2025. Further approvals followed swiftly: consent from the Mangrove Cell on April 11, 2025, and an application for forest clearance submitted to the Deputy Conservator of Forests, Alibag, on March 18, 2025. The MoEF & CC granted in-principal approval under Section 2 (1) of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, on May 20, 2025, the same day the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board also accorded its permission.
The ruling also saw the rejection of objections raised by the Bombay Environmental Action Group (BEAG). BEAG had contended that such activity was prohibited under the 2019 CRZ notification and that the project lacked necessary forest and tree felling permissions. However, the court clarified that Clause 5 of the 2019 notification explicitly permits the laying of pipelines for public utilities in CRZ-IA, especially when utilizing trenchless horizontal directional drilling methods, which is the approach adopted by Reliance. On the matter of tree felling and forest clearance, the court confirmed that all requisite approvals had been secured and that the trees identified were not mangroves.
