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W.P.No.1963 of 2020 N.KIRUBAKARAN, J. and P.VELMURUGAN, J. (Order of the Court was made by N.Kirubakaran, J) Indiscriminate laying of road without milling/scraping the existing road makes the buildings to go down and the roads go up, resulting in inundation during rainy season, flooding the residential houses and other properties and blocking the drainage also. The classic example is War Memorial located at Chennai. War Memorial has got a platform surrounding it. In 1980’s the height of the platform was about five feet height and it was very difficult to climb the said platform from the road those times. In due course, the road has been repaired and relaid without milling and the present condition is that the height of the road has gone up and the platform has gone down. When that is the position in the arterial road in the City of Chennai, one can understand the position of the roads in other Corporations,

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W.P.No.1963 of 2020
N.KIRUBAKARAN, J.
and
P.VELMURUGAN, J.
(Order of the Court was made by N.Kirubakaran, J)
Indiscriminate laying of road without milling/scraping the existing road makes the buildings to go down and the roads go up, resulting in inundation during rainy season, flooding the residential houses and other properties and blocking the drainage also. The classic example is War Memorial located at Chennai. War Memorial has got a platform surrounding it. In 1980’s the height of the platform was about five feet height and it was very difficult to climb the said platform from the road those times. In due course, the road has been repaired and relaid without milling and the present condition is that the height of the road has gone up and the platform has gone down. When that is the position in the arterial road in the City of Chennai, one can understand the position of the roads in other Corporations, Municipalities, Towns, Urban areas and Villages. No contractor is milling/scraping the road before relaying the road. It would only go to show that the contractors are not properly monitored by the officials while the work was executed and sheer negligence on the part of the officials is the root cause for this problem. Therefore, the officials should be identified and put to task whenever milling is not done while relaying the road.
2.The present writ petition has been filed by Mayiladuthurai Chamber of Commerce seeking writ of mandamus directing the 2nd and 3rd Respondents and their officials to inspect the Pattamangalam Street, Mayiladuthurai Town based on the representation given by the petitioner dated 08.11.2019 and relay the street only after scrapping and levelling the existing road so that the height of the street will not increase than that of the basic height of the shops and houses situated in the Pattamangalam Street, Mayiladuthurai Town. They would contend that whenever roads are relaid without scrapping and levelling the existing streets, the height of the streets get increased every time, thereby affecting the people, traders and businessmen.
3.Earlier the First Bench of this Court in the case of R.Bala Chandar Vs. The Principal Secretary to Government, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department and two others in W.P.No.4913 of 2018 by order dated 09.03.2018 has passed the following order:
“3. The indiscriminate repair and relaying of roads without scrapping the existing roads has led to considerable increase in the height of roads, which, in turn, causes accumulation of water in nearby houses, with plinth level lower than the surface of the road. This causes inconvenience to house owners, who cannot be expected to raise the height of the plinth of their houses every time roads are relaid.
The learned Government Pleader has placed before us a letter dated 09.3.2018 from the Executive Officer stating that it has already been decided to scrap the existing roads and lay new roads in Chitlapakkam Town Panchayat area. Necessary instructions in this regard have also been given.
We record the undertaking of the third respondent that before relaying the roads, the existing roads shall be scrapped and the height of the roads shall not be increased.
The respondent – Authorities shall ensure that the directions to the contractors to properly scrap the existing road/ roads before relaying the road/roads are strictly complied with by regular supervision and inspections, while the roads are under construction.”
Inspite of giving such an undertaking before the First Bench of this Court and the direction issued by the First Bench, no proper steps have been taken by the various departments to mill the existing road cap and relay the road so that the height of the road remains the same. The contractors who are not milling the road before relaying it should be fixed and black listed, otherwise this problem would continue. Further, even while issuing the tender for laying the road, the public should be informed by way of paper publication that if the milling of the road is not done, the public shall complain about the same to the notified authorities for initiating appropriate action against the erring contractors.
4.This case is also no exception to the above rule. Though counter affidavit has been filed by the 2nd respondent stating that picking of B.T. surface and removal of the same has been done before improving the road surface, it is not happening throughout the State, whenever the road is being laid. Therefore, this Court suo motu impleads the Secretary, Highways Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Fort St. George, Chennai as party respondent to this proceedings. Mr.K.Magesh, learned Special Government Pleader takes notice on behalf of the newly impleaded respondent.
5.The Secretary, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department; the Secretary, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department and the Secretary, Highways Department of Government of Tamil Nadu are directed to appear before this Court on 28.02.2020 to explain as to why the roads are being laid without milling/scraping.
(N.K.K.,J) (P.V.,J)
25.02.2020

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