HC seeks report on Mahamaham related violations

The Madras High Court today directed authorities to file a report on action taken on removal of encroachments, violations of building norms and others during the recently-concluded Mahamaham festival in Kumbakonam, considered the Kumbh mela of the South.
When a PIL on the matter came up for hearing, the first bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice M M Sundresh, directed the authorities to prepare a chart with regard to the action to be taken and action already taken.
The PIL by "Elephant" Rajendran had sought a direction to appoint a committee headed by a retired judge of the high court to go into the expenditure of the allocated fund of Rs. 120 crores by the state government for the once-in-a 12-year festival held last month.

"The Mahamaham festival is over but that is not the end of the problem. The tanks have to be cleared, the encroachments have to be removed, the violation of the building norms have to be dealt with, the conversion of the buildings from residential to commercial and making multi-storeyed buildings require action," the bench said.
It directed the authorities to prepare a chart dealing with all these aspects and as to what has been done and was proposed and in how much time and file the same within four weeks. The bench then posted the matter to June 8.