Metro Corp seeks permission to carry out work at night

The Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) approached a High Court-appointed committee today, seeking urgent permission to carry out construction work round-the-clock in the Cuffe Parade area for the Metro III line.

The Bombay High Court had restricted the MMRC from carrying out construction work at night last December as it was causing noise pollution and inconvenience to residents.

The court was hearing PILs, which raised the issue of noise pollution caused by the metro work and also the felling of trees for Mumbai Metro.

The court had also set up a committee of justices B R Gavai and S M Kemkar to hear matters related to noise pollution caused by the ongoing construction work of the Metro III (Colaba to Seepz) line.

The MMRC today filed an application before the committee, which sits in the high court.

The tunnel-boring work in the Cuffe Parade area of south Mumbai could only be done at night, when the traffic was minimal, the application said.

The work would go on till July and result in some noise pollution, it added.

Amicus Curie (appointed to help the court) Zal Andhyarujina and advocate Robin Jaisinghani, one of the petitioners and a resident of the area, opposed the application.

If the court was going to grant permission, then the MMRC should be asked to use noise-suppressing barriers, they said.

The committee noted that it was empowered to grant such permissions.

It would hear the parties and convey its opinion and suggestions to the high court bench, which is hearing the main petition, it said.

The committee would continue to hear the arguments on the application tomorrow.