SC stays HC verdict on peripheral ring road

SC stays HC verdict on peripheral ring road
The Times of India

New Delhi: The Supreme Court, which had recently given a green signal to Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise (NICE) to go ahead with the Mysore Expressway project, on Monday stayed an order of the Karnataka High Court asking the contractor to alter the alignment of the road and avoid bifurcating Gottigere tank.

A Bench comprising Justices Ruma Pal and Markanday Katju, while staying the HC order, issued notice to the state government on the petition of NICE.

The HC had in 1999 passed an order directing the contractor not to lay any road bisecting the Gottigere tank preventing or disturbing inflow of water. However, it had said that it was open to the contractor to dig up the tank bed for laying pillars for constructing the overpass.

In 2004, the authorities changed the alignment and approved a peripheral ring road around the tank so as to protect and preserve the tank. However, Gottigere Panchayat filed a petition in the HC seeking initiation of contempt proceedings against the contractor for changing the alignment violating the court directive. The HC accepted the petition for hearing and directed framing of charge for contempt of court against contemners.

‘Allow us to build road’

Bangalore: Expressing happiness at the Supreme Court stay, NICE managing director Ashok Kheny said the company should now be allowed to build the peripheral road as per the alignment approved by the SC ruling on April 20.

NICE says that if the road on stilts is built by cutting across the Gottigere tank, nearly 70 per cent of the tank would be gone. But going around the tank would mean cutting across the lands of some well-connected and powerful individuals, which the latter are trying to stop. TNN