MADURAI: The state government informed the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday that a government order has been passed by the municipal administration department on March 1, constituting high level monitoring committees in each district (except Chennai) to monitor and remove unauthorised constructions. The GO was passed in response to a series of directions issued by the high court bench on a batch of petitions seeking action against unauthorised constructions in various districts under the jurisdiction of the Madurai Bench.
In the earlier hearings, the court had expressed concern over three categories of unauthorized constructions namely, the constructions put up in patta lands, those in government poramboke lands and illegal conversion of residential buildings into commercial buildings. These irregularities cannot take place without the knowledge of local authorities, the court had observed.
"Due to the inaction of authorities, the courts are flooded with petitions seeking removal of unauthorised constructions," criticised the court, and told the additional advocate general it was high time the government appointed high level committees in each corporation and municipality, under respective commissioners, to monitor and tackle the problem.
As a result of this, the municipal administration and water supply department passed a GO on March 1, constituting high level monitoring committees in all districts in the state (except Chennai which already has such a committee), with the respective district collectors as the chairperson and the commissioner of the concerned municipal corporation or municipality or executive officer of town panchayat as the member-convenor.
Other members of the committee would include the commissioner or superintendent of police, deputy director of town and country planning, regional director of municipal administration, revenue divisional officer, among others. An independent officer in the cadre of deputy collector from the revenue department would also be appointed as a member of the said committee, the GO added.
The committees would prepare an action plan to remove, monitor and prevent unauthorised constructions in their jurisdiction. The committees would meet once in a month and submit monthly reports to the government, the GO added. Recording this, a bench of justices D Krishnakumar and P Dhanabal adjourned the batch of cases to Wednesday.