HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.12946 of 2011 Date:12.09.2011 Between: Smt Motaparthi Ramadevi And another. ..... Petitioners AND The State of A.P., reptd by its Secretary, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries Department and five others. .....Respondents Counsel for the Petitioners: Sri A.V.Sesha Sai Counsel for Respondent Nos.1 to 3 & 5: AGP for Fisheries Counsel for Respondent Nos.4 & 6: GP for Revenue The Court made the following: ORDER: This Writ Petition is filed by the owners of the lands admeasuring Ac.6-18 cents in Sy.Nos.61/4 and 62/2 and Ac.2-14 cents in Sy.Nos.61/1, 2 and 5 of Chavalipadu Village, Mandavalli Mandal, Krishna District, assailing the action of the respondents in seeking to send their applications for conversion of their agricultural lands into fish ponds to the State Level Committee constituted under G.O.Ms.No.24, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries (Fish.II) Department, dated 09.04.2010. At the hearing, Sri A.V.Sesha Sai, learned counsel for the petitioners, submitted that during the pendency of this Writ Petition, a Division Bench of this Court by common judgment, dated 29.04.2011, in Writ Appeal No.550 of 2010 and Writ Petition Nos.17991 of 2010 and batch upheld the validity of G.O.Ms.No.24, dated 09.04.2010, with certain observations and directions. He has also submitted that after the filing of this Writ Petition, the State Government has issued G.O.Ms.No.47, dated 24.06.2010, whereunder the composition of the State Level Committee has been changed. Learned counsel has placed before the Court the said common judgment of the Division Bench, wherein the following directions have been issued: - “1. Before any permission is granted for conversion of agricultural land into non- agricultural purposes, permission under Sec. 3 of the Conversion Act is must; 2. The landholder, who intends to convert his agricultural land into non-agricultural purpose ie., fish tanks, has to make an application before the Committee Constituted in G.O.Ms.No.47, dt.24-6- 2010. The Committee which scrutinizes the applications necessarily can proceed with the same only on enclosing the conversion order obtained under the provisions of the Conversion Act along with the application and take steps. 3 . At the time of granting permission for aquaculture, it is always open for the adjacent landholders to make their objections for converting the adjacent lands into fish tanks and their objections shall be taken into consideration before granting permission. 4. After conversion of agricultural land into fish tanks, if any complaint is received stating that it is causing pollution of underground water or adjacent land became saline, the said complaint has to be referred to the authority constituted under the Environment Act with the report from the Pollution Control Board for certification that it will not cause any environment pollution and in the event if it causes environmental pollutant, the Committee constituted under the Environment Act shall suggest remedial measures and only on complying with the remedial measures, the Committee shall certify accordingly. Basing upon the said certificate, the authority constituted under G.O.Ms.No.47 dt.24-6-2010, which accorded permission for setting up of fresh aquaculture has to take steps either for discontinuation of aquaculture activities or can withdraw the permission so granted to protect the environment as suggested by the Committee constituted under the Environment Act. 5. Wherever Committee granted permission without there being any permission obtained for conversion of agricultural land into non- agricultural purposes, the persons whose lands were permitted to convert for setting up of fish tanks should be directed to produce a certificate of conversion under the Conversion Act by fixing a time limit and on failure to submit such certificate, permission granted earlier should be withdrawn.” Learned counsel for both the sides agreed that the applications already filed by the petitioners shall be disposed of in accordance with the directions given by the Division Bench of this Court in Writ Appeal No.550 of 2010 and batch, as reproduced above. Having regard to the above submissions of the learned counsel, the Writ Petition is disposed of in terms of the directions contained in the common judgment, dated 29.04.2011, of the Division Bench in Writ Appeal No.550 of 2010 and batch, extracted hereinabove, with the direction to the respondents to dispose of the petitioners’ applications within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. As a sequel to disposal of the Writ Petition, W.P.M.P.No.15747 of 2011 filed by the petitioners is disposed of as infructuous. __________________________ C.V.NAGARJUNA REDDY, J 12th September, 2011 DR