MUMBAI, Aug. 26 -- The Bombay High Court has directed municipal corporations and other planning authorities across Maharashtra to halt work at construction sites if they are found violating the newly mandated safety norms for under-construction high-rise buildings. The court also directed the civic bodies to initiate immediate civil and criminal action by treating the violations as breaches of building permissions. The division bench of justice Girish Kulkarni and justice Arif Doctor, in an order passed on Friday, said, "any breach of such measures or requirements in the report of the expert committee, shall be held to be violation of the building permission, and shall entail consequences of breach of such development permission, liable for all civil and criminal actions, as the law would mandate." Raising concerns over the safety measures that need to be adopted in the construction of high-rise buildings, the court had on August 7 appointed an expert safety committee, which submitted a report on August 12, titled "Special Safety Control Recommendations for Working at Heights During High Rise Construction". These safety norms have been put in place after a notification by the Urban Development Department on Friday in view of incidents of deaths or injuries to people on the ground by objects falling from under-construction buildings. The expert committee report also considers the safety of people who are not directly involved in the construction project but live nearby and require protection from objects falling from high-rise constructions. It noted that while the city's construction industry has absorbed the necessary technology for tall buildings, there have been cases of negligence and safety violations by builders, developers, and contractors. Lack of rules for high-rise constructions affects nearby areas such as roads, gardens, and parking spots. In case of accidents or when construction equipment breaks, debris and gravel fall here, the court observed. It is with such concerns and sentiment that the court, while accepting the report, observed that it needs to be implemented in "letter and spirit" by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which is tasked with issuing notifications and making these regulations a part of the building permissions being granted for high-rise constructions being undertaken. Following the high court orders on Friday, the Urban Development Department (UDD) issued a notification asking all municipal corporations, councils, and metropolitan authorities to implement the committee's recommendations. On Friday, the court also directed the planning authorities to incorporate and adhere to these guidelines while granting development permissions. The court ordered that a specific condition aligning with the expert committee's report must be included when granting development permissions. Any violation of the building permission shall be treated as a breach, and the violator shall be liable for all civil and criminal actions, the court said. "The planning authorities are directed to keep a special vigil on such high-rise constructions and strict implementation of the norms and measures as set out by the expert committee. In the event of any breach of such compliance, immediate action shall be initiated, including issuance of stop-work notices, as this would be paramount, considering the safety of human lives," the court concluded....