A suggestion by the Madras High Court bench today to the Advocate General to have a toll-free number enabling anyone to inform authorities of unauthorized constructions for them to take action found favour with the Attorney General who submitted that it would be advertised within a week.
The Court had on August 7, 2014 taken a serious view of unauthorized constructions in Chennai, particularly in busy GeorgeTown locality, and directed that non-compounable constructions be demolished within three months.
The first bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice T S Sivagnanam, had passed the order on a PIL by social activist 'Traffic' Ramaswamy in the backdrop of the June 23 2014 fire accident in Sowcarpet locality here in which one person died.
When the matter came up today, the bench perused Action Taken Reports by the Chennai Corporation Commissioner and Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and also recorded the AG's submissions that the committee already appointed in this regard under retired Judge Justice S Rajeswaran will take about six weeks more time to finalize the course of action.
The bench then mooted the suggestion for the toll-free number. The AG immediately responded and submitted that the number would be advertized within a week.
To apprehensions of 'Traffic' Ramaswamy that there is inadequate police protection to Corporation officers who go to take action and demolish these constructions, the Court said police are bound to give assistance to them or CMDA officials wherever whenever it is sought for.
The bench said if there are any orders preventing action by the committee, it should be brought to its notice.
Earlier in his status report, the Corporation Commissioner submitted that CMDA grants permission to construct multistoryed buildings only on roads with nine meters and above width, while planning permission is given by the Corporation for ordinary buildings under Tamil Nadu Town and Country Planning Act, 1971.
With regard to Georgetown area, spread over four square km, it said only 30 of 479 streets have roads with a width of nine metres and above, accounting for 3,080 buildings. It also said there was very limited manpower, with which a preliminary survey was done, which found less than one per cent of buildings are built without any violation in the area.
The bench then posted the matter to July 10, 2015.
