Full order of svnj bench Since waterbodies are essential for survival of not only human beings, but also various other creatures, we expect the Member Secretary, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department, who is present before this Court and Mr.V.B.R. Menon, learned counsel for the petitioner to sit across the table and find out the modalities for restoring the water body in question so that the future generation will not suffer from scarcity of water. At the request of Mr.J. Ravindran, learned Additional Advocate General for respondents, post on 20.09.2023. The further appearance of official respondents, who are present before this Court, is dispensed with for the present. (S.V.N.J.)   (K.R.S.J.) nv                                                              12.09.2023        

Contempt Petition No. 1604 of 2021

1. VAIDYANATHAN,J.

AND

1. RAJASEKAR,J.

          When the matter is taken up, the Principal Secretary to Government of Tamil Nadu, Tourism, Culture and Religious Endowments Department/6^th respondent, the Principal Secretary to Government of Tamil Nadu, Public Works Department/4^th respondent, the District Revenue Officer, Chennai, the Revenue Secretary and the Chairman, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department/7^th respondent are present before this Court through videoconferencing and the Member Secretary,  Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department is present before this Court in person.

2. A status report dated 12.09.2023 has been filed by the Member Secretary, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department wherein it has been categorically mentioned that the Government has accorded sanction for Rs.5 crores through Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board towards of eviction of 1087 families from Pallikaranai Marsh Land and their rehabilitation to alternate tenements provided by Tamil Nadu Urban Development Board under suitable scheme and that the Tamil Nadu Urban and Housing Development Board has issued allotment orders for 149 households so far. It is further stated by the Member Secretary,  Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department that this is not the final report and that a comprehensive report based on further information to be collected will be filed in due course and that they have come into the picture only two months ago. The relevant paragraph is extracted hereunder:

“8. The answering respondent humbly submits that under the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission drone-based LIDAR and RGB study of the inner land use pattern was conducted by the Tamil Nadu Aerial Unmanned Vehicle Corporation under the Tamil Nadu Wetlands Mission during the month April, 2023. The said study was carried outto have a baseline study on the existing land use changes within the Pallikaranai Marshland for its future monitoring of the ecological, hydrological parameters as well as status of encroachments for long term conservation and management of Pallikaranai Marsh Land. Further, the bathymetric study of the Pallikaranai Marsh Land is proposed to be conducted with the help of Tamil Nadu Aerial Unmanned Vehicles Corporation for the monitoring of edaphic factors including Soil Carbon, Soil Methane and Soil Nitrous Oxide for establishing the role of Pallikaranai Marshland in the climate change mitigation.  (A copy of the aforesaid draft report is placed as Annexure/A-2).  It is humbly submitted that, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority is taking necessary steps to preserve wetlands throughout the State of Tamil Nadu. …”

3. It is really a sad state of affairs that in the State of Tamil Nadu, instead of buying a land, any person can encroach upon a land and the Government is willing to give an alternative site. If this is going to be allowed, then the tax payers’ money would be wasted. The Government is not expected to given an alternative site to any encroacher much less the persons, who have encroached upon the water body. If an alternative site is given to the encroacher, who has encroached upon the water body, it would amount to perpetrating illegality by the Government. According to us, any person, who is an encroacher, more so, on a water body, is a traitor of the Nation. We make it very clear that if the encroachments on water body are not removed, more particularly, based on the present report, this Court will be constrained to pass appropriate orders including following the dictum of this Court dated 29.04.2019 in W.P. No. 13648 of 2016, i.e,ushering in the military force to remove the encroachments.

4. Since waterbodies are essential for survival of not only human beings, but also various other creatures, we expect the Member Secretary, Tamil Nadu State Wetland Authority, Environment and Forest Department, who is present before this Court and Mr.V.B.R. Menon, learned counsel for the petitioner to sit across the table and find out the modalities for restoring the water body in question so that the future generation will not suffer from scarcity of water.
5. At the request of Mr.J. Ravindran, learned Additional Advocate General for respondents, post on 20.09.2023.
6. The further appearance of official respondents, who are present before this Court, is dispensed with for the present.

(S.V.N.J.)   (K.R.S.J.)

nv                                                              12.09.2023