The Times of India       09.12.2010

HC restrains PMC from sealing road

PATNA: The Patna High Court has restrained Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) from making any construction or erecting gate on the approach road leading to Jagat Bhawani apartment, west of officers' flat, adjacent to the Bailey Road here.

A single bench presided by Justice Navin Sinha passed the order on the writ petition of Jagat Bhawani Apartment Residents' Association secretary Ashok Kumar Sinha submitting that the erstwhile Patna Regional Development Authority (PRDA) had in 2004 approved the map plan of Jagat Bhawani apartment on the ground that it would be constructed on the lane (approach road) linked to the Bailey Road. But the PMC, which later took over the PRDA, recently took a decision to seal that very lane which provided the vital thoroughfare to the residents of the apartment.

Petitioner's counsel Tegh Bahadur Singh submitted that PMC's decision to seal the lane was affecting the basic right of the persons living in 40 flats in the Jagat Bhawani apartment for movement and easy access to the the main road through the said lane.

Life convicts acquitted: A division bench, comprising Justice Shyam Kishore Sharma and Justice Akhilesh Chandra, on Wednesday acquitted six life convicts, including one Naresh Paswan, allowing their appeal challenging sentence of life term to them by a sessions court of Bhagalpur for murder of one Rameshwar Mandal on September 22, 1986, in Bhagalpur district.

Appellants' counsel, Shakeel Ahmad Khan, submitted that the four witnesses on whose evidence the appellants' were given life sentence were actually relatives of Mandal, who was shot dead on the fateful day by unknown persons. Khan added that no independent witnesses were examined with regard to the murder of Mandal.

The Deccan Herald  09.12.2010

Hurdles to Mysore Road widening cleared, finally

Bangalore, December 8, DHNS:

Hurdles to the completion of the widening of the Mysore Road have been removed, with Muslims and Christians finally agreeing to part with portions of their burial grounds for the project.

A compromise formula was worked out with the two communities during a site review of the project conducted by the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Standing Committee on Major Works on Wednesday.

Standing Committee Chairman, H Ravindra said the road widening project in all probability is scheduled to start next Monday.

The Mysore Road widening project of the BBMP has been stalled over the past few months due to resistance from the two communities whose burial grounds would lose land to the project. However, during meetings with members of the Palike standing committee, representatives of the minority communities readily agreed to cede land -  167 meters of the Muslim burial ground and 6,000 sq ft of the Christian burial ground.

Alternative land

In return, the BBMP will ensure that no structure within the Muslim burial ground is razed and will build a compound wall at its cost. As for the Christians, the BBMP will provide the community with an alternative land 4,500 sq ft in the vicinity. The Christian community representatives will now try to get the sanction from the Archbishop for proceeding further with the compromise formula.

 “The Muslims, Christians and the Hindus have all come together supporting the road widening project,” Ravindra told presspersons after the inspection. He said people losing property will be compensated by the BBMP in return for the Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) which will be bought by the Palike.

In reply to a question, Zameer Ahmad Khan, MLA, who accompanied the standing committee members said that a few of the affected persons were resisting the road widening project. 

In Padarayanapura, as many as 241 properties were to be razed for the road to be widened. Zameer Ahmad put forward a solution to appease the shopkeepers and the BBMP by proposing that instead of the envisaged 80-feet road along Padarayanapura, the Palike could go for 60-feet road which would spare some of the houses along the stretch.

Mixed welcome

Meanwhile, it was a mixed welcome for the BBMP representatives on Mysore Road and Padarayanapura.

While slogans against the Palike and local MLA were raised by land losers for being insensitive to their demands, Chairman of the Standing Committee H Ravindra was garlanded by the local supporters of the MLA.

Another flyover

The Standing Committee on Major Works on Wednesday announced that the Rs 700-crore flyover construction project from Sirsi Circle to Kengeri is scheduled to begin next month.

However, the project is pending approval of the State Government. The ambitious flyover connecting Sirsi Circle to Kengeri is envisaged to cover a 13-km stretch. The first phase is learnt to cover a three-kilometre stretch from the Sirsi Circle end.