GPCB withdraws case against Surat Diamond Bourse after government’s nod

The Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) has withdrawn a criminal complaint filed eight years ago against the promoters of the Surat Diamond Bourse project in Khajod village of Choryasi taluka, Surat district. The complaint was initially filed in 2018 for violating the Environment (Protection) Act. The case was officially withdrawn by GPCB on May 31, 2025, following directives from the government.

Background of the case

On March 16, 2018, M S Dasani and S H Vaijnapurkar, regional officers of GPCB, inspected the Surat Diamond Bourse project site at Block No 177-P in Khajod village. During the inspection, they met with project director Mahesh Gadhvi and issued a notice under Section 10 of the Environment (Protection) Act, seeking environmental clearance (EC) documentation.

It was discovered that the project promoters had not obtained the mandatory environmental clearance from the government. When asked to produce the EC certificate, the promoters failed to do so. GPCB also sought additional documents from them, including Surat Municipal Corporation’s permission, total plot area, built-up area, construction commencement date, and the names and addresses of the project directors.

In response, the promoters disclosed the built-up area of the project as 83,372.686 square metres. They further stated that the project falls under Schedule 8 of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification dated September 14, 2006, and that they had applied for the environmental clearance. However, construction and land preparation had already commenced before the EC certificate was issued.

Due to this violation, the GPCB regional officer filed a criminal complaint against the Surat Diamond Bourse and eight of its directors in the Surat Chief Judicial Magistrate Court on May 21, 2018, under Sections 15, 16, and 19 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, for breaching the Ministry of Environment and Forests’ notification.

Case status and withdrawal

Since the filing of the case, no significant progress occurred over the next seven years, with the matter stuck at the process issuance stage. On May 14, 2025, the Surat District Collector, following instructions from the government, directed GPCB to withdraw the case.

Consequently, on May 31, 2025, GPCB filed a withdrawal application under Section 54 in the Lok Adalat, stating that it no longer wished to pursue the complaint. The court accepted the withdrawal, bringing the legal proceedings to a close.