SC refuses to ban asbestos in the country

New Delhi, Jan 21 (PTI) The Supreme Court todayrefused to ban asbestos, considered a health hazard, butdirected the Union and state governments to put in place abody to regulate its use and manufacturing.

A bench of Chief Justice S H Kapadia also askedvarious state governments to follow a 1995 ruling of the apexcourt, spelling out the guidelines and frameworks for the useof the building material, generally used for erectingtemporary shades and walls.

The bench, which also included justices K S PanickerRadhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar, gave the order whiledismissing a public interest lawsuit filed by NGOKalyaneshwari, which had moved the court in 2004 seeking itsban on the grounds that it poses serious health problems forthe people living under roofs made up of asbestos.

While dismissing Kalyaneshwari''s petition, the benchalso questioned its bonafide.