Andhra Pradesh High Court Issues Directions Against Encroachment In Water Bodies By Public To Prevent Increasing Disasters
The Andhra Pradesh Excessive Court docket issued numerous instructions to the Division of Income, Division of Irrigation, Division of Panchayat Raj, Division of Municipalities and Municipal Firms in regard to upkeep and preservation of waterways, amongst others.
A Writ Petition was filed towards the discover of Tahsildar issued for removing of Bridge (ingress and egress to Petitioners’ Home) searching for to put aside the identical.
The Bench of Justice Gannamaneni Ramakrishna Prasad noticed, “These violations on waterways and watercourses through which freshwater or drainage water flows are damaging or destroying the natural world apart from inflicting humongous harm to the human inhabitations. In occasions of flood, inundation of land by water develop into digital death-traps for animals within the wild (in forests) in addition to to the people within the villages, townsandmetropolitan cities. It’s also seen that the violators go scot-freewithimpunity as a result of the prevailing regulation, doesn’t have a deterrent impact. Due to this fact,it’s the proper time for the Authorities (regulation makers) to make legal guidelines, guidelines and rules to weaponise the Authorities Departments to attain this objective. This regulation wants to deal with not solely the violators from among the many public, but additionally the Officers who conveniently flip a blind-eye to the acts of violation.”
Advocate Okay V Aditya Chowdhary represented the Petitioners.
Case Transient
The Petitioners have been granted permission with a number of circumstances to construct the bridge on each side of the Ralla Kodu Channel by the Deputy Govt Engineer, Irrigation Subdivision.
Nevertheless, it was the rivalry of the Tahsildar in addition to the Govt Engineer that the Petitioners in actual fact has free and handy ingress and egress on the western aspect however the Writ Petitioners have closed it by erecting a Storage and had began taking full entry from the southern aspect the place the Petitioners have illegally constructed a concrete bridge.
Court docket’s Evaluation
The Court docket thought-about the points regarding the encroachments made by the general public in water our bodies and the consequential disasters that will ensue on account of such encroachments.
The Andhra Pradesh Excessive referred to NITI Aayog’s Report titled “Report of the Committee Constituted for Formulation of Technique for Flood Administration Works in Total nation and River Administration Actions and Works associated to Border Areas (2021-26).”
Whereas referring to the Report, the Court docket highlighted the key discovering associated to floods was building over lake beds and encroachments of drainage channels have been recognized as issues which have exacerbated flooding and inundation within the metropolis.
“Having regard to the above details the place the Petitioners have constructed 62 ft 11 inches of concrete bridge in blatant violation of the permission granted by the Deputy Engineer…that the Writ Petitioners have been using this portion illegally for a substantial size of time and the Irrigation Division additionally has conveniently ignored the blatant violation of their very own instructions”, the Court docket stated.
Within the gentle of the above the Court docket issued the next instructions, in public curiosity, to the Division of Income, Division of Irrigation, Division of Panchayat Raj, Division of Municipalities and Municipal Firms:
1. The above Departments shall make sure that all waterways and or watercourses that carry freshwater in addition to drainage water are maintained and preserved when it comes to depth, width and size as per the Official Data.
2. The above Departments shall make sure that any building made by anybody over the watercourses and or waterways that allow circulation of recent water and drainage water shall not in any method impede, block or ‘trigger a bottleneck impact’ both throughout the regular time or throughout the time of flood.
3. Involved Departments shall make periodical visits/inspections alongside your complete size of such waterways/watercourses ideally as soon as in six months and submit stories to their respective Heads of Departments as regards violations or deviations from permits/licences that are seen throughout their visits/inspections with full measurements of the violations/deviations and the particulars of the violators/deviators.
4. Involved Heads of the Departments, upon receiving of such stories, shall forthwith trigger an enquiry and guarantee clearance inside fifteen days, by following the due technique of regulation. The above instructions shall apply to all waterways and or watercourses, and feeder channels, both man-made or pure.
5. Involved Heads of Departments shall percolate this Order to all Officers in the entire hierarchy for efficient compliance.
Accordingly, the Petition was disposed off.
Trigger Title: Magineni Shanmukha Vinay Kumar V. .The State Of Andhra Pradesh & Ors.
