NEW DELHI (INDIA): Delhi has become a dangerous city to live in because of rampant unauthorised construction, the high court here said today, and felt the need to unify the three municipal bodies as the trifurcation of MCD had “not improved” the situation.
Pulling up the three municipal corporations of Delhi, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said the court was flooded with PILs against illegal and unauthorised constructions which showed no regulation was being followed by the civic bodies.
“Delhi is such a dangerous city now because of unauthorised constructions,” it said.
The court also said that “under the shield” of the National Capital Territory of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Act, amended from time to time, “completely illegal and rampant unauthorised constructions were going on”.
The Act, which was last amended by the Lok Sabha in December 2014, protected from punitive action all unauthorised constructions up to June 1, 2014.
Prior to the amendment, unauthorised constructions only up to February 8, 2007 were protected.
It observed that the MCD trifurcation had not improved the situation and there was a need to unify the trifurcated MCDs, while hearing a PIL alleging unauthorised construction was going on in some properties in Mehrauli in south Delhi.
Advocate Kushal Kumar, appearing for South Delhi Municipal Corporation, said that in the instant case the persons who were allegedly engaged in unauthorised construction had obtained sanction from it by applying online.
The bench, however, said that just because the application was made online, the corporation’s responsibility to carry out an inspection “does not get obviated”.
The court listed the matter for hearing on August 8.
Source: Press Trust of India