Jaipur, July 4 -- The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered an independent inquiry into alleged irregularities in multiple leases for mining activity near the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Alwar district. NGT's Central Zone bench at Bhopal passed the order on July 1 while hearing a petition by Pawan Singh, who alleged that many leases delisted earlier for failing to get mandatory clearances from the National Board of Wildlife were later revived on the basis of a revised distance certificate that placed the mines beyond 10- kilometre protected zone around the reserve. The plea questioned the basis for the revision and sought an independent inquiry into the matter. After hearing the matter, the bench of judicial member justice Sheo Kumar Singh, , and expert member Sudhir Kumar Chaturvedi observed that the allegations warranted further examination as they involved significant environmental concerns. "The issues were raised in this application, are protection of wildlife habitat, conservation of forest ecology, and enforcement of binding environmental safeguards, governing mining activities, in the ecologically sensitive region surrounding the Sarriska tiger, region and mining leases, situated in village Jhiri and adjoining areas, of Tehsil,Thana, Gaji, District Alwar, Rajasthan," the bench noted. It directed the state principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) to depute competent senior officers to conduct an inquiry to determine if the revised distances listed were correct and also verify whether other environmental norms were followed. In addition, the bench constituted a joint committee comprising a senior representative of the state's chief wildlife warden, a representative of the district collector in Alwar, and a representative of the State Pollution Control Board (RSPCB), to carry out a site inspection and submit a factual and action-taken report within six weeks of time. RSPCB was designated the nodal agency to coordinate the inspection....