IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION

PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION NO. 140 OF 2006

1. Janhit Manch

2. Bhagvanji Raiyani

3. Chandrakant Patel

4. Dattaram Kumkar ...Petitioners

Versus

• 1. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation
• 2. State of Maharashtra ...Respondents

Petitioner No.2, in person, present

Mr. K.K. Singhvi, Senior Advocate, with Mr. P.Y. Sakhare and Ms. Shobha Ajitkumar for Respondent No. 1

Mr. J.S. Saluja, Assistant Government Pleader, for Respondent No. 2.

CORAM: B ILAL NAZKI and A.R. JOSHI, JJ. DATE: JULY 29, 2009

This P.I.L. raises many important questions which concern the health and security of the citizens and the security of the city of Mumbai and the environment.

2. It is an admitted fact that the pipes carrying water from the source to Mumbai citizens are more than 100 years' old, and they carry water for 160 kilometres. From the record, it is evident that 90 kilometres of the pipes are overground, and 60 kilometres are underground. We are not sure, from the security point of view, whether these pipes are safe, particularly considering the present security environment of the country. We are also not sure whether the water, which is carried for the citizens of Mumbai, is hygienically safe, because throughout the route of these pipes, there are hutments built unauthorisedly by people.

3. According to the latest affidavit filed by the Municipal Corporation, there are more than 15,000 hutments, which are either adjacent to the pipeline or, even at places, over it. The Corporation submits that hutments constructed before 1995 are protected, and cannot be removed, unless the occupiers of those hutments are rehabilitated. This, in itself, is a huge task, but even after 1995, more than 8000 hutments have again come up. Therefore, the Municipal Corporation has also, in a way, failed to stop establishment of new hutments.

4. Now, in order to protect the pipelines, remove the hutments and ensure that the water, which is used by the citizens of Mumbai, is safe, and to ensure that these pipelines do not become a target for persons to attack the citizens of Mumbai, we feel that it needs concerted effort and a wellthoughtover policy by various agencies, including the Government of Maharashtra. This Court will be handicapped in the absence of requisite inputs and data to give directions to achieve the purpose of ensuring safety and health of people of Mumbai.

5. Therefore, to enable this Court to pass orders, which ensure safety on account of health and security of the City of Mumbai, we appoint a Committee headed by the Chief Secretary of the State. This Committee shall have the Director General of Police, Maharashtra, the Municipal Commissioner, Mumbai Municipal Corporation, and the Finance Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, as Members. They shall meet soon, consider all aspects of the matter, take assistance from any Department they like, which the Chief Secretary is otherwise authorised to do by virtue of his office, and submit a detailed plan of action to this Court within a period of 6 weeks. If the Committee, during its deliberations, feels it necessary to seek any clarifications from this Court, it shall be at liberty to approach the Court.

6. List the matter after 6 weeks.

7. A copy of this order shall be sent to the Chief Secretary of the State through the Government Pleader.

BILAL NAZKI, J.

A.R. JOSHI, J.