Bus depot on riverbed: Court notice to govt, DTC

Can the Delhi government and the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) be allowed to use the bus depot near the Commonwealth Games Village as a permanent facility? The Delhi High Court will now decide the issue.

Can the Delhi government and the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) be allowed to use the bus depot near the Commonwealth Games Village as a permanent facility? The Delhi High Court will now decide the issue.

HT Image

A bench of chief justice Dipak Misra and justice Manmohan has issued notice to the Delhi government and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) on a PIL filed by environmentalists challenging the move to use the area as a permanent bus depot and sought a direction for its demolition.

The depot was built by the public works department on the land owned by the DDA.

They have been asked to file a response within four weeks. Claiming that the depot was built on the Yamuna riverbed, VK Jain, founder of NGO Tapas, said it was supposed to be a temporary structure just for the Games.

He said the lieutenant governor of Delhi had assured that this it was a temporary structure which will be removed later and there was no plan for permanent structures.

He said the PWD tells the depot cost them R 61 crore.

“No one would spend R61 crore for a temporary structure.”

Najmi Waziri, standing counsel for the Delhi government, told the court that the 61 acres in question stretched from the Indraprastha Power Station and it was being used as a dumping ground for fly ash before the construction of the depot.

He sought time to file a detailed reply on the issue.