Chennai, Sep 3 (PTI): Tsunamis will enter mainland and quakes will shake the earth, if people fail to protect water bodies and instead encroach upon them, the Madras High Court has warned.
The first bench of Chief Justice M N Bhandari and Justice N Mala made the observation while dismissing a batch of PIL petitions from alleged encroachers who challenged the notice from the authorities concerned and prayed for a direction to them to issue patta (land deed) with respect to their lands in Tiruvallur district based on their application dated August 8 this year.
The challenge to the notices has been made mainly on the ground that without issuing notices in Form-II, notices in Form-III had been caused. In the absence of notices in Form-II showing the boundary of the tank, it cannot be said the petitioners had encroached on the lands of the water tank. they said.
The petitioners could not refer to any of their rights over the land in question despite an opportunity of hearing was given by the court, the bench said. “Hence, we hold that the petitioners have not made out a case warranting interference in the notices in Form-III impugned herein,” the bench said and dismissed the petitions.
“Before parting with this case, it is necessary to observe that if rampant encroachment on water bodies and tanks is regularised, it would lead to encouraging encroachments and the ultimate result would be facing drought and in contrast floods. If we take care of nature, nature will take care of us. The problem of global warming is prevalent only because of the failure of human beings to take care of nature.” “It is the bounden duty of every citizen to maintain water-bodies, tanks, grazing land and even forests. If we keep on affecting nature, it would affect human beings and it is happening day-in and day-out in the form of natural disasters like tsunami, earthquake,” the bench pointed out. PTI CORR SA SA
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