Bombay High Court Refuses Extension To Bakeries Seeking Delay In Switch From Wood-Fired Ovens To PNG Gas

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday refused to grant more time to city bakeries seeking an extension of one year to switch from traditional wood-fired ovens to piped natural gas (PNG).

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Dismissing the application by 12 bakery owners, the court noted that hardships faced by a few cannot be a reason to defy the larger interest of society to have a clean and green environment.

A division bench of Justices Shree Chandrashekhar and Aarti Sathe dismissed an interim application filed by 12 bakeries challenging notices issued by authorities on January 19 directing them to migrate to cleaner fuel by July 8. The bakers had sought quashing of the notice or, in the alternative, an extension of time, citing practical difficulties in transitioning to PNG.

The notices were issued pursuant to high court order on January 9 while hearing suo motu (on its own) plea on air pollution.

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Advocate Darius Khambata, appointed as amicus curiae (friend of court) in the suo motu matter, opposed plea by bakery owners, stressing that “right to a clean environment under Article 21 must prevail over individual hardships”.

Senior counsel Venkatesh Dhond, appearing for the bakeries, argued that several establishments had already applied to Mahanagar Gas Limited (MGL) for PNG connections and were awaiting a joint survey with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

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Dhond contended that dismantling wood-fired ovens and restructuring bakeries was a massive exercise and could only be undertaken with an assurance of steady PNG supply. “If you commit (to PNG supply), I will convert in time. But they must give assurance that they will supply gas. Otherwise, 60,000 people will lose jobs, and there will be no bread in the city,” he argued.

Khambata countered that the HC had already fixed a sixmonth timeline to switch to green fuels. “Show cause notices were sent, the six months ended on July 8, and no one challenged that order,”he told the court.

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The court noted that the bakers had been aware of the timeline in January but had not approached the court until July, and that their affidavits only reflected difficulties in compliance rather than impossibility. The judges stressed that pollution caused by conventional fuel could not be overlooked in the face of larger public interest.

“It is well settled that hardships faced (by a few) cannot be a reason to defy the larger interest of society to have a clean and green environment,” the bench observed.

The petitioners had also argued that around 750 bakeries in Mumbai and nearly 2,000 across the metropolitan region, with a long cultural history, would be affected by the order. They submitted that bakery products sustain thousands of semi-skilled and unskilled workers.

However, the court held that no justifiable reason existed to extend the timeline further. “We do not find any reason to grant an extension. The application is dismissed,” the bench concluded.

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In December 2023, the High Court had taken suo motu cognisance of rising air pollution in the city and directed several measures, including mandating bakeries to transition from wood to gas fuel by July 2025.