The Bombay High Court on Wednesday asked the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), state government and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to present an action plan for the removal of encroachments from the area around Jogeshwari caves, a heritage site.
Following a PIL filed by NGO Janhit Manch, the court in October last year had directed the removal of encroachments from the area around the four caves — Jogeshwari, Mahakali, Mandapeshwar and Kanheri. It had also sought a report from a court-appointed committee spelling out minimum intervention measures to rid the heritage monuments of illegal infringement.
Amicus Curie (friend of the court) Shiraz Rustomji said that in the committee report submitted to the court, the ASI had suggested removal of encroachments between 17-40 metres from the site. The ASI had earlier informed the court that there were 750 illegal encroachments around the caves in Jogeshwari. Rustomji had said that the encroachments were not just within the barred 100-metre radius of the caves but were in fact on the monument itself.
The BMC told the court that none of these structures had obtained a construction certificate from the corporation, but they have been standing for a long period of time.
Justice JN Patel and Justice KK Tated accepted all the suggestions made in committee report and sought a check on the state government’s rehabilitation policy for the
encroachers.
