The Centre, however, blamed the Uttar Pradesh and Haryana governments for illegally permitting two leading private parties to lay down gas pipelines without taking No Objection Certificates from the Centre which was mandatory.

Solicitor General G E Vahanvati and Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium told a three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justices Arijit Pasayat and S H Kapadia that the states had granted permission to these private players on their own without taking the Centre into confidence and were not competent to grant such permission.

The apex court, however, told the Centre that its order dated April 11, 2005 clearly stated that those who fulfill the eligibility conditions can be considered for grant of permission to supply the CNG anywhere and the IGL, a Government of India subsidiary, could not claim monopoly in its supply.

The apex court fixed for hearing the petition next Friday on the request of the Centre which wanted time to respond to the suggestion.

The IGL had already monopoly in areas like Panipat and Sonipat in Haryana and in Delhi.

A PIL seeking ban on the use of diesel in Delhi and in NCR to check increasing level of pollution had also been filed in the Supreme Court.

The apex court ordered that no project should be allowed across the dense forests unless and until it was indispensable.

The court also accepted the suggestion that the money power should not be allowed to invade these dense forests as their value and importance could not be bartered for money.