1995 Supreme(SC) 1236

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Kuldip Singh and S. Saghir Ahmad, JJ.
I.C. (C) Nos. 73-75 of 1995
Decided On: 29.11.1995
Jai Narain and Others etc. etc. Appellants
Vs.
Union of India and Others Respondent

Headnote:

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 - Sections 4,5-A,6,and 17,17(4) – Constitution of India,1950 - Article 32 - construction of STP at Keshopur - land in dispute is being acquired for a public purpose namely for setting up of pumping station/sewerage treatment plant in villages Josola, Nilothi and Shaffipur Ranola for the planned development of Delhi. The provision of sub-section (l) of Section 17 of the Act have been made applicable and as such the enquiry under Section 5-A of the Act has been dispensed with. The relevant part of the notification dated January 6, 1995 is as under - "No. F. 9(46)/94-L&B/LA/298 : Whereas it appears to the Lt. Governor, of Delhi that the land is likely to be required to be taken by Government at public expense for a public purposes; namely for setting up of pumping station/sewerage Treatment plant in village Jasola for the planned Development of Delhi, it is hereby notified that the land in the locality described below is likely to be required for the above purpose..... The Lt. Governor being of opinion that provisions of sub-section (l) of Section 17 of the said Act are applicable to this land, is further pleased under sub-section 4 of the said section to direct that the provisions of Section 5-A shall not apply – Held, , we direct that 13 writ petitions mentioned in the public notice published in the Hindustan Times dated November 30, 1994. be transferred from the Delhi High Court to the file of this Court. These petitions be listed for final disposal in the 2nd week of February, 1995. Meanwhile, we vacate the stay orders granted by the High Court in all these writ petitions and direct the Delhi Administration to take over the possession of the land and hand over to the Delhi Water Supply and Sewage Disposal undertaking."Further directions were issued to the Delhi Administration on December 14, 1994 to take over the land from DDA and acquire where necessary for the STPs at various places in Delhi. This Court has been issuing time-bound directions for the procurement of land for the STPs in various parts of Delhi. The impugned notifications regarding Keshopur STP were issued under the directions of this Court. On January 23, 1995 this Court passed the following order regarding the land in dispute - "Notification under Section 4 read with section 17(1) of the Land Acquisition Act has been issued. The land in the Notification has been identified by way of plan indicating boundaries and not by the Khasra numbers. To issue Notification under Section 6, exact Khasra numbers of the land in dispute are required. Mr. Jaitley states that the D.D.A. will given exact Khasra number of the land within one week from today. The Notification be issued within two weeks from today." - It is a paradox that the Delhites--despite river Yamuna being the primary source of water supply--are discharging almost totality of untreated sewage into the river. There are eighteen drains including Najafgarh drain which carry industrial and domestic waste including sewage to river Yamuna. Thirty eight smaller drains fall into Najafgarh drain. The Najafgarh drain basin is the biggest polluter to river Yamuna. Eight of the drains including Najafgarh drain are untrapped, four fully trapped and remaining six are paritally trapped. All these eighteen drains, by and large, carry untreated industrial and domestic wastes and fall into river Yamuna. The river Yamuna enters Delhi at Wazirabad in the North and leaves at South after travelling a distance of about twenty five kilometers. The water of river Yamuna till it enters Najafgarh is fit for drinking after treatment, but the confluence of Najafgarh drain and seventeen other drains make the water heavily polluted. The Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) level in the river has gone so high that no flora or fauna can survive. It is of utmost importance and urgency to complete the construction of the STPs in the city of Delhi. The project is of great public importance. It is indeed of national importance. We take judicial notice of the fact that there was utmost urgency to acquire the land in dispute and as such the emergency provision of the Act were rightly invoked. We reject the first contention raised by the learned counsel. - Petitions dismissed.