The court emphasized the importance of adhering to the prescribed standards and guidelines for building lines and control lines along highways to ensure the safety and smooth flow of traffic. The court also stressed the need to remove illegal constructions and encroachments on highways to maintain the accessibility and safety of the roads.

1. - This writ petition has been filed as a public interest litigation with regard to encroachments on the National High Way with a further prayer to increase the width of the road. Particular reference and prayer is made in respect of National Highway Road No. 12 but during the course of arguments all the learned counsel for the. parties agreed that the principles should apply to all the roads connecting Jaipur with National Highways.

2. The Roads and their width are regulated by the National Highways Act, 1956. The PWD has also published a book known as `Specifications for Highways (Part II) Explanatory Note 1981 Edition and the Chapter 2 of the aforesaid book deals with Highway standards and land width, building lines and control lines have been defined in the same chapter and in clause 2.2 the recommended standards have been prescribed and as per Table 2.2-I, the standards which have been recommended for land width have been prescribed and a distinction has been made in the land width for open areas and areas which have already been built-up and since the area through which the aforesaid National Highway passes, is already a built-up area at the disputed place, therefore, the normal land width has been shown as 30 meters and range has been shown as 30-60 meters overall whereas the width of the road at the relevant place is 161.

3. The Rajasthan Highways Act, 1995 has also been passed and published in the Rajasthan Gazette dated 22.11.1995 and it is an Act to provide for the declaration of certain highways to be State Highways, to provide for restriction of ribbon development along highways for the prevention and removal of encroachment thereon, for the construction, maintenance and development of highways, for the levy of betterment charges and for certain other matters. Under this Act State highway (Special) State Highway, major district road, other district road or a village road have to be notified. Highways authorities are to be appointed in accordance with the provisions of Section 4 of the said Act.

4. Certain instructions have been issued by the Central Government to the State Government regulating control of ribbon development. One of such instructions dated 13.1.1977 is reproduced as under :

"No. NH III/P/72/76
Dated the 13th Jan. 1977

To,

1. All State Govts. and Union Territories, (Departments dealing with Highways)

2. All the State Chief Engineers/Addl. Chief Engineers/Principal Engineers dealing with Highways.

3. Engineer-in-Chief CPWD and Army Headquarters, DGBR.

Subject : Control of Ribbon Development and removal of encroachments along highways.

1. In supersession of the instructions communicated in the circulars mentioned below, I am directed to issue the following consolidated guideline for control of ribbon development and removal of encroachment along highways specially National Highways and such centrally sponsored highways as the Lateral Road and the Strategic Road -

1. PL-12(2)/52; dated 10.10.52

2. WII-2(57)/61 dated 6.10.61

3. W143 (3) 63 dated 24.7.63

4. PL-7(11)57 dated 1.1.66

2. Ribbon Development along arterial highways has become an acute problem near developing towns. This is further accentuated by uncontrolled prolification of access points to the highways. In some of the congested towns along National Highway where ribbon development has already taken place, bye-passes have been provided but unless adequate measures are taken to prevent recurrence of ribbon development, no lasting solution Is possible. Some of the measures which should be given immediate consideration to control further deterioration of the situation are;

(a) Provision of adequate land width for future development

(b) Provision for service road for traffic which is purely local in character.

(c) Control of access,

(d) Control of building activities,

(e) Control of roadside advertisement,

(f) Prevention of encroachments and their speedy removal.

3. Access to arterial highways should be restricted to predetermined points and in urban and in