SC asks Centre to approach panel on land use in 9 zones

New Delhi, Apr 28 (UNI) The Supreme Court today directed the Union Urban Development Ministry to approach the court-appointed monitoring committee to identify the roads in 9 zones without a zonal plan to explore the possibility of extending some relief to the residents regarding the mixed land use.

Blaming the government's appeasement policy for the failure of the system in Delhi, a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Y K Sabharwal and Mr Justice C K Thakkar, also requested the monitoring committee to file its report by May 4, 2006 along with suggestions on whether some relief can be given to the residents of these zones as per Delhi master plan under which 25 per cent of the area on ground floor can be put to commercial use.

Earlier, Solicitor General G E Vahanvati appearing for the Central government pleaded that of the 15 zones in Delhi, only six had zonal plans while nine others, including Rohini zone which had many 58 by 80 ft wide roads, had no zonal plan at all.

Mr Vahanvati, while conceding that the system had indeed broken down in Delhi, pleaded that there were 140 roads falling in zones without zonal plans and the residents of these areas should not be made to suffer for the failure of the authorities.

The court however, made it clear that today's order shall not be construed as grant of stay against the ongoing sealing process and the same shall go on as per its orders dated February 16, 2006.

The court has adjourned till May 5, 2006 the hearing of the Centre's application seeking six months' moratorium against the ongoing sealing process of commercial establishments operating from residential areas in Delhi, to identify the areas where mixed land use can be permitted .

As per the master plan, 25 per cent of land on ground floor can be permitted to be put to commercial use only and cannot be let out.

At one stage, the Chief Justice wondered what message the government wanted to convey to the law-abiding citizens who became the main sufferers of the unholy nexus between the officials and the violators of the law.

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