The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Madurai News : Bench forbids `adverse activities' on Vandiyur lake

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Oct 14, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Madurai

Bench forbids `adverse activities' on Vandiyur lake

By Our Staff Reporter

MADURAI, OCT.13. The Madurai Bench of the Madras High court today passed interim orders, directing the Collector and the Public Works Department to ensure that no activity adverse to the interest of the Vandiyur lake and its ecology should be carried out until further orders.

The lake is allegedly exploited to a large extent all these years.

Passing the orders on a writ petition, Justice R. Balasubramanian also directed the Collector to file a comprehensive report before the court regarding the origin of the lake, its area as it stands today and the type and extent of encroachments, if any.

The order pointed out that the report should also clarify whether there were any water channels leading to the lake, their existence as of today and the encroachments were an elevated cause in having blockedg the channels.

The Collector was ordered to suggest remedial measures that could be taken up to prevent the lake from becoming extinct.

The Walkers Club, an organisation of individuals using the park in the adjoining land, filed the petition, seeking a direction to the authorities not to change the characteristics of the park and the walking area. They were aggrieved by the act of the district administration, permitting the construction of a skating rink, "causing hardship" to the walkers.

Though the prayer in the petition was limited with regard to preventing the park area alone, the Judge passed the order based on the contentions of the counsel appearing for the petitioners.

Earlier, arguing for the club, M. Patturajan stated that the lake was shrinking day by day owing to illegal encroachments. He submitted that unless the encroachments were removed, there would be no water at all in future.

"The skating rink has also been constructed in the lake area and allowed to be used by a private body, which affects the very nature of the lake," Mr. Patturajan added.

The counsel said he would file another writ petition on protecting the lake, which could be heard along with the present petition before the Bench.

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