End of the road for SC monitoring panel?

With chief minister Sheila Dikshit mooting the idea of bringing MCD under government control, the civic agency has fortified its autonomy by convincing the Delhi High Court of the need to strengthen its nodal committee in charge of demolitions in the city.

The MCD has informed HC that in view of being flooded with complaints, the nodal steering committee in charge of monitoring demolition operations needs to be expanded by adding more engineers, law officers and draftsmen.

‘‘Right now if a complaint is received from an area, the committee depends on reports of engineers from that same locality for feedback. It needs to be made independent and should have inhouse experts who can verify complaints better,’’ said MCD counsel Ajay Arora.

HC, while agreeing in principle, has sought objections from the petitioners, Kalyan Sanstha and from the amicus curiae in the case, former court commissioner Rakesh Sharma. The petitioners have objected to this demand of MCD arguing the committee is a mere eyewash as illegal constructions are once again mushrooming in the capital.

In case HC gives its final green signal, it would mean a permanent end to court appointed monitoring panel that was temporarily disbanded last year to make way for MCD’s committee. The HC panel consisted of a monitoring committee and court commissioners who together supervised MCD’s demolition work in the capital.

In a related development, HC has also asked the central government to expedite its process of framing norms for constructions in unauthorised colonies in Delhi.
Source:- The Times of India 22 May 2009 P. 6 Delhi
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