CHENNAI: The Madras High Court recently dismissed a batch of writ petitions challenging the permission granted by the Ikkarai Boluvampatti village panchayat to the Isha Foundation for setting up a gas crematorium in Coimbatore.
A division bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan rejected the petitioners’ claim that the proposed crematorium violated Rule 7 of the Tamil Nadu Village Panchayats (Provision of Burial and Burning Grounds) Rules, 1999, which mandates a minimum distance of 90 metres from houses and drinking water sources.
The court held that the issue was resolved by a full bench ruling in Jagadeeswari v. B Babu Naidu, which clarified that the distance restriction under Rule 7 would not apply to crematoria established after obtaining a valid licence from the village panchayat.
Referring to Rule 5, the court observed that the sole statutory requirement for opening or constructing a burial or burning ground is the grant of a licence by the panchayat. The judges observed that the proposed gas crematorium was aimed at serving public interest and could not be viewed as detrimental to community welfare.