Delhi High Court orders removal of encroachments on Yamuna river bank
The Hindu
Delhi High Court orders removal of encroachments on Yamuna river bank, appoints DDA Vice Chairman as Nodal Officer.
The Delhi High Court has ordered the Vice Chairman, Delhi Development Authority (DDA), to remove all encroachments and illegal construction on the Yamuna river bank, river bed and drains flowing into river Yamuna.
Also read: NGT takes cognisance of The Hindu report on Yamuna floodplains
The direction of the High Court came in response to a petition filed by one Shabnam Burney highlighting unauthorized constructions on the Yamuna River Bank around the Shaheen Bagh area.
Though the petition was confined to Shaheen Bagh area, the High Court was recommendation by the Delhi government to pass directions for removal of illegal constructions and encroachments in the entire Yamuna river bank, river bed, drains and floodplains area.
The High Court, in its order passed on July 8, also appointed the DDA’s Vice Chairman as the Nodal Officer who will coordinate with officials of Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Delhi Police, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, Irrigation and Flood Control Department, Public Works Department, Delhi Pollution Control Board and Forest Department.
It directed the Vice Chairman, DDA to convene a meeting of all the concerned officials within a week.
In the petition, Ms. Burney stated that the illegal construction has been going on without any permission or regard for the environmental concern. The plea stated that the illegal construction will endanger the ecologically fragile Yamuna floodplains.
Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot has sought a report from the State government on a complaint that the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) had taken up works amounting to ₹387 crore in violation of rules in Varuna and Srirangapatna Assembly constituencies, allegedly on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s oral instructions.
“We are organising a health research convention, which comprises a couple of workshops, community-based learning, and also cardiac care. We also included a one-day seminar on medical education, how medical education has evolved in India and the U.K., and what we can learn from each other” said Dr. Piruthivi Sukumar Dean of the International Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of Leeds during his interaction with The Hindu.