The Bombay High Court on Monday came down heavily on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) over its handling of open manholes, questioning why the civic body takes action only after lives are lost instead of adopting preventive measures before the monsoon.
A division bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Kamal Khata expressed dissatisfaction with the BMC’s affidavits and progress reports, describing them as “good for nothing and merely an eyewash.”
The observations came during a hearing related to the death of 55-year-old Aslam Shaikh, who reportedly fell into an open manhole in Mumbai’s Sakinaka area during heavy rainfall earlier this month.
In its submission, the BMC informed the court that the Municipal Commissioner had convened a meeting following the incident and suspended four officials responsible for the concerned area. The civic body also said it had constituted an inquiry committee to investigate the incident and recommend measures to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
Appearing for the BMC, counsel Anil Sakhare told the court that the Municipal Commissioner had assured that such incidents would not recur.
The bench, however, stressed that the focus should be on preventing accidents rather than responding after they occur.
“What you (BMC) have done after such an incident is not important. What you do to prevent such untoward incidents is what matters. Life is precious. Human lives are of paramount importance,” the court remarked.
The judges further observed that Mumbai experiences heavy monsoon rains every year and questioned why precautionary measures are not implemented before the season begins.
“Why can’t steps be taken before the monsoon season. Will the BMC keep waiting for someone to lose their life and then jump in to take measures?” the court queried.
Sakhare assured the court that all open manholes in the city would be secured within 12 hours and that barricades would be installed wherever manholes are opened for repair work.
The BMC also informed the court that the family of the deceased would receive compensation of Rs 10 lakh. The matter has been listed for further hearing on July 14.
Source: Rediff
