Coming down hard on Tamil Nadu government for allowing illegal construction on water bodies and water courses over a period of time, the Madras High Court today said authorities in power cannot destroy water bodies or water courses formed naturally for the benefit of mankind.
"It is beyond the power of the state to alienate or re-classify the water bodies for some other purposes without compensating the effect of such water bodies,"the first bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana said.
The bench stated this while dismissing a PIL by T K Shanmugam, CPI(M) Secretary, North Chennai District Committee, seeking to grant pattas and regularize encroachments in Kolathur village on 'Kolathur Eri'.
The bench observed that this Court,taking judicial notice of the fact that even during hearing of this case, Tamil Nadu was seriously affected by unprecedented floods this month, leading to loss of lives and property.
It said it was compelled to put across its views that the entire loss due was due to maladministration and the prevailing practices by authorities, as almost all water bodies and water courses were allowed to be encroached upon, resulting in reduction in their flood storing and carrying capacity, forcing the water to deviate from its regular course and enter residential areas, causing devastating effects.
The authorities have permitted construction of houses in the water bodies, resulting in inundation of these areas during flood and all these houses remaining sumberged. "This shows that despite the orders of the Court, the authorities pretend to act swiftly in removing encroachments but only in a selective manner and not in a planned and determined manner."
It is with regard to this case only the HC had made a reference to be answered by a full bench comprising three Judges, as conflicting judgments were rendered by two benches on usage of water bodies.
The three-member full bench had made it clear that even water bodies not in use cannot be diverted for any other purpose and remitted back the matter to the division bench to decide on the PIL.
Writing the judgement, Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana observed "having regard to the acute water scarcity recurring in the state of Tamil Nadu as a whole, we feel that a time has come where the state has to take some definite measures to restore the already earmarked water storage tanks, ponds and lakes to its original status as part of its rain water harvesting scheme, which has already been initiated.
It rejected the petitioner's contention that people were
residing there for nearly 25 years, saying it cannot be a ground to direct government to regularize or direct to issue patta as they are the encroachers, that too on the water body.
Dismissing the PIL, the bench said that "in view of the foregoing discussion and in the light of the answer to the reference rendered by the Full Bench on this issue, we are of the view that the arguments of the petitioner claiming that the encroachments in river Poramboke have to be regularized is legally not sustainable and the relief claimed in this writ petition cannot be granted."
The matter relates to the PIL filed in connection with the eviction notices issued to residents of the area by the government and also seeking to direct the government to issue patta and regularize the encroachments.
The PWD, on the basis of the October 4, 2007 HC order, had issued eviction notices to residents, which are one among the water bodies in which encroachments were sought to be removed.
The claim of the petitioner was that there are several families residing for more than 25 years in houses/housing colonies in the area.
The petitioner said there are approximately 3400 houses in the area, of which about 900 were served with the eviction notices. He alleged that some areas were reclassified as 'Natham' and some others served with eviction notices.
