HC directs NHAI to unclog Goa highway, clear encroachments

The Bombay high court has directed the state wing of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to clear all encroachments and put in place a monitoring system

The Bombay high court has directed the state wing of the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to clear all encroachments and put in place a monitoring system to permanently decongest the 1.7-km stretch of the Mumbai-Goa highway at Mangaon which hinders the smooth flow of traffic.

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The directions were issued in a bunch of petitions that complained of the highway becoming constricted due to unauthorised constructions along the stretch. The court also expressed its displeasure over the lack of coordination between the concerned authorities.

The division bench of justices SC Dharmadhikari and RI Chagla, while hearing a public interest litigation along with numerous petitions, was informed that the state unit of the NHAI was responsible for the maintenance of the highway and the 1.7-km stretch of road that passes through the town of Mangaon. However, little or no action had been taken by them to restrict encroachments that had come up bordering the highway which was resulting in traffic problems.

Additional government pleader B Samant, counsel for the state unit of NHAI submitted that NHAI conducted regular drives to evict the encroachments, but they returned. Samant also submitted that as part of the road came under the purview of the local authorities, it had time and again undertaken joint drives to remove the encroachments but such drives had been ineffective.

After hearing the submissions, the court directed the NHAI to have proper communication with the other authorities to address the problem . The court also directed the state unit of NHAI to file an affidavit enumerating the measures it had suggested like roping in the local police to extern encroachers who returned and fencing the stretch to discourage pedestrians from jaywalking.

The state unit of NHAI also suggested that they would monitor the stretch through CCTVs and regular patrolling of the area and also get the help of the local self-government authorities and the district collector to solve the issue once and for all. The matter has now been posted for further hearing after four weeks.