Protect Padmanabhaswamy temple from sewerage: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Kerala Water Authority to ensure that sewerage does not enter the premises of the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple and the tank associated with it.

Asking the Kerala Water Authority to itself execute the work of diverting the sewerage drains without outsourcing it, a bench comprising Chief Justice Jagdish Singh Khehar, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said the Authority would complete the work by May 15.

The bench asked the Authority to start the work forthwith.

The court asked the Authority not to outsource the work as it noted that floating of tenders and awarding of contract itself would consume one and a half months.

The court asked the Authority to execute the work for the diversion of the drainage lines after senior counsel Jaideep Gupta, appearing for Kerala, told the court that the plan for the diversion of drainage lines was already in place and would cost Rs 29 lakh.

The bench said a weekly progress report on the work by the Authority would be given to the amicus curiae Gopal Subramanium.

Besides, the diversion of drainage lines, which Subramanium told the court was polluting the temple tank, the court asked a five-member panel headed by the Thiruvananthapuram district judge to invite tenders for the restoration of the main deity, the tanks associated with it and the roof of the sanctum sanctorum.

The top court by its April 24 order had entrusted the administration of the Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple in Kerala to a five-member committee headed by the district judge of Thiruvananthapuram.

The court said that notice inviting the expression of interest would be issued in a week's time and then the offers would be invited and the compiled by the committee.

It directed the next hearing on April 17.

--IANS

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