India, Nov. 1 -- The Bombay High Court has directed the Maharashtra government to set up a High Power Committee (HPC) to assess livelihood losses suffered by 3,151 traditional fishing communities due to the construction of bridges and other infrastructure projects for the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA).

A division bench of Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait M Sethna directed the state to constitute the committee within two weeks of the order being uploaded. The affected fishermen will have three weeks to submit their claims, which the committee must examine and decide within the next three months.

The petition was filed by the Maharashtra Small-Scale Traditional Fish Workers' Union, representing fishermen...