The Madras High Court has directed government pleader STS Moorthy to produce the copy of the proposed draft amendment to amend the penalty clause in Schedule VII of Section 191 and 202(5) of Chennai City Municipal Corporation Act,1919 with regard to illegal sewage connections.
Taking serious view with regard to illegal sewage connections, the court had in an earlier order directed the government to introduce a graded penalty mechanism where such penalties must vary from Rs.5,000 to couple oflakhs.
When a PIL filed by Change India, an NGO represented by its director A. Narayanan, came up before a division bench, the government pleader informed it that the process of approving the amendment proposal from Principal Secretary/Commissioner, Corporation of Chennai, with regard to penalty clause involves various legislative process and administrative procedures.
An affidavit filed by the Principal Secretary, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department, also said the draft amendment proposal has reached its final stages and effective steps were being taken to place the draft bill in the coming Assembly Session.
The matter relates to a PIL filed by Change India in connection with prevention of manual scavenging.
In the counter affidavit filed, the court was informed that in the meeting held between various officials, it was decided by the Corporation of Chennai and the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewage Board to prepare a template to go for a bidding to finalize an agency to undertake the exercise of identifying number of premises with sewage connections and those without such connections.
It was also further submitted that necessary action was being taken for bringing an amendment to prohibit illegal sewage connections into stormwater drains and roads/streets in respect of corporations and municipalities other than Chennai and the status report would be filed in the next hearing date.
The bench, comprising Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice R Mala, then posted the matter for further hearing to March 7.
