New Delhi, Sept. 26 -- Taking serious note of illegal constructions and the conversion of residential properties for commercial use, the Supreme Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to seal over 16,000 properties in Meerut and demolish unauthorised structures.
A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan also formed a judicial commission, led by former Supreme Court judge Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, to conduct a thorough inquiry in Uldepur, on the outskirts of Meerut, regarding the nature of land where these illegal residential colonies have developed.
"We are shocked and disturbed to learn, reading the status report, that hundreds of illegal residential colonies have come up at Uldepur," the bench said, after perusing the report by P Guruprasad, Chairman of Uttar Pradesh Awas Evam Vikas Parishad.
The bench noted that the department has undertaken an inspection and survey of various parts of Meerut. The report showed that the town has been divided into four zones: Zone-A, Zone-B, Zone-C, and Zone-D.
"In Zone-A, 16 teams deputed for the purpose of inspection/survey have identified 16,726 structures to be absolutely illegal/unauthorised. Out of 16,726 structures, 12,907 comprise residential, 874 residential-cum-non- residential, and 2945 non-residential constructions," it noted in its September 21 order.
The top court, hearing a contempt petition related to non-compliance with previous directives on illegal constructions, instructed the authorities to take appropriate action against all the 16,726 illegal structures in Zone-A at the earliest.
"The first step in the process is to ask the occupants to vacate the premises and to seal all these premises, i.e., the 16,726 illegal structures. We direct accordingly. It is possible that some of these structures may be in a dilapidated condition and may collapse, resulting in casualties. We do not want this to happen at any cost. Therefore, prompt action is necessary. We direct that prompt action be taken insofar as all the four zones are concerned," it said.
The bench added that in the unfortunate event of an incident leading to loss of innocent lives, the responsible government officer would be held personally liable. The court noted that the report did not address the situation in Zone-B, Zone-C, and Zone-D, and therefore, the court lacks information about the number of illegal structures in these three zones.
It stated that on the next date of hearing, the authority concerned shall give us a comprehensive report as regards Zone-B, Zone-C and Zone-D respectively. "However, since illegal construction in Zone-A has been identified, appropriate action shall now be taken for demolition of the same," the bench underscored.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.