The Gujarat High Court today ordered a stay on all construction activities at the Nirma Ltd's upcoming cement plant in Mahuva taluka of Bhavnagar district while hearing a petition by farmers opposing it.

A division bench of Chief Justice S J Mukhopadhaya and Justice Akil Kureshi further ordered that the stay would become effective from Thursday (March 18) following a request by Nirma Ltd's lawyer Mihir Thakore, who said that his clients needed a day's time to finish construction of a concrete raft which was already on the verge of completion.

The Court was hearing petition by Shree Mahuva Bandhara Khetiwadi Pariyavaran Ran Bachav Samitee (SMBKPRBS) consisting of farmers who are opposing Nirma Ltd's cement plant contending 222 hectares of land that out of the 268 hectare alloted to the company, belongs to a water-body.

The farmers led by BJP MLA from Mahua Kanu Kalsariya have also contended that the cement plant poses a threat to agriculture and animal husbandry besides causing irreparable damage to the environment.

"The respondents (Nirma Ltd would keep status quo and not make further construction or change the landscape of the land under question," the court ordered.

During the hearing of the case, farmers' lawyer Anand Yagnik submitted satellite imageries, obtained from National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), Hyderabad showing the water bodies near Samadhiyada village where Nirma Ltd's cement plant is coming up.

He submitted that the Nirma cement plant was coming up on water body which is source of prospering agriculture in the region.

Chief Justice Mukhopadhaya during the proceeding asked Nirma's lawyer if they could find another place for their cement plant. He added that it would be better if the problem is solved amicably.

The lawyer representing the defendant, however, opposed the contention of Mahuva farmers that the plant was being built on water bodies.

Appearing for the state government, which alloted land to Nirma, advocate general Kamal Trivedi also denied that the plant was being constructed on water bodies.

Trivedi further said that there was no river in the Mahuva area.

To this comment Yagnik pointed out that in government's own report on the dams in Samadhiyada and other villages, it was clearly mentioned that there was a small river called Sansangi in Mahuva region which was a source of sweet water in the area.

After hearing the arguments of both the parties the court asked Yagnik to file an affidavit on the imageries submitted by him and also asked defendant's lawyers to file a reply to the affidavit by March 31.

Farmers of Mahuva have been agitating for last six months against government's move to hand over fertile land to Nirma.