(Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying for issuance of a writ of mandamus as stated therein.)

P. Sathasivam, J.)

Exnora International, Madras-17, filed this Public Interest Litigation in the year 1996, seeking to issue a Writ of Mandamus to direct the respondents to demolish the structures put up in the Buckingham Canal and to forbear them from in any manner implementing the Metropolitan Rapid Transit System (in short “MRTS”) project in an environmentally unsustainable manner.

2. According to the petitioner, this writ petition is filed in public interest to prevent the implementation of the MRTS project in the city of Madras in an environmentally unsustainable manner, which will have far-reaching adverse impact on the lives of millions of residents of this City. The petitioner is a registered Trust formed on the objective of improvement of civil amenities and the environment. One of the primary concerns of the petitioner Trust is public health and safety.

3. The city of Madras has four water ways running through it. They are Cooum, Adyar river, Otteri Nallah and Buckingham Canal. These water ways were initially the channels through which rai