CHENNAI: The Madras HC has granted permission to the Chennai Metro Rail Corporation (CMRL) to carry out a skywalk construction connecting Phase I and II and sewage connection works on the Open Space and Recreation (OSR) land belonging to a residential apartment, with the condition of completing the works by the end of May 2026.
Justice M Dhandapani passed the orders on the petitions filed by the CMRL and other related agencies, which approached the court for permission to carry out the works through the OSR land belonging to the Trellis South Flat Owners Welfare Association in Vadapalani.
“This court is inclined to grant permission to the petitioners to complete the skywalk project within eight months and the sewage connection within four months. The entire work, including both the skywalk and sewage connection, shall be completed on or before May 31, 2026,” the judge said in the recent order.
He decided to grant the permission by taking into account the fact that the counsel for the flat owners’ association, Karunakaran and the Amicus Curiae C Mohan have not raised any serious objections for the CMRL to carry out the works through the OSR land and restore it in its original form once the works are complete.
The flat owners had gifted land measuring 19, 421 square feet to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) as OSR land in 2016. This land was transferred to the CMRL for raising the skywalk and other public facilities for the Vadapalani metro station.
In 2022, the court granted permission to the CMRL to carry out the work for the skywalk connecting Metro Rail Phase I and II but the work could not be completed due to traffic snarls and other issues.
In the meantime, the existing sewage line, connecting the Vadapalani metro station to the Vadapalani temple across the 100-foot road, got damaged due to multiple road works.
The CMRL and the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) held inspections and found that the only feasible option is to lay a line through the ground level of the OSR land.
Subsequently, the CMRL approached the court for permission with the promise that the said land would be brought back to its original form as soon as the works were completed.