The Bombay High Court (HC) has extended the stay on the construction of the proposed cycling and jogging track around Powai lake in Mumbai on Tuesday, November 16. The stay is extended till January 31, 2022.
The Bombay HC on November 1 had restrained the civic body from constructing the cycle track. The order was passed during a hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by students of the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B).
They students, who had filed the PIL, challenged the construction of the track and claimed that it was violating the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules. A letter was also written by the Powai residents to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray urging him to stop the construction of the cycle track.
The civic body, in response to the PIL, stated that it is a man-made reservoir. Therefore, it did not flout the Wetlands rules.
The court in its earlier hearing about the lake construction had asked the state to verify the claims of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and file its affidavit in reply. However, the lawyers of the civic body and Maharashtra government sought time to file affidavits in reply. After this the Bombay HC adjourned the hearing to December 13, 2021, and continued the stay till January 31, 2022.
Recently, the letters were returned unopened which were addressed to Maharashtra CM, Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray and the Principal Secretary asking the government to scrap the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Powai Lake and Vihar Lake cycle track projects.
Also read: Civic Body Commissions Study To Assess Crocodiles In Powai Lake
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