IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CWP No. 12287 of 2008 (O&M) Date of Decision: 7.1.2009 Rambir ....Petitioner Versus State of Haryana and others .....Respondents CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE T.S.THAKUR, CHIEF JUSTICE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE HEMANT GUPTA 1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? 2. To be referred to the Reporters or not? 3. Whether the judgment should be reported in the Digest? Present: Shri C.L. Sharma, Advocate, for the petitioner. Shri Rameshwar Malik, Additional, AG, Haryana. Shri Mohnish Kumar, Advocate, for Shri Narender Hooda, Advocate, for respondent Nos. 2 and 3. T.S. Thakur, C.J. (Oral). CM No. 111 of 2009. CM is allowed. Counter on behalf of respondent Nos. 2 and 3 is permitted to be taken on record. CWP No. 12287 of 2008. This petition has been filed in public interest. It prays for a writ of certiorari quashing an order dated 13.6.2008 passed by the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, pursuant to the direction of this Court dated 14.5.2008 issued in Civil Writ Petition No. 8016 of 2008. The grievance of the petitioner in the said case, as also in the present petition, which happens to be the second round of litigation between the CWP No. 12287 of 2008 (2) parties relates to the proposed filling up of a village pond for conversion of the same into a park. In the earlier writ petition, mentioned above, this Court had noticed the representation filed by the petitioner before the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, against the proposed conversion of the pond into a park and directed that the Municipal Commissioner, Faridabad, shall consider the said representation and decide the same within four weeks. In obedience to the said direction, the Commissioner examined the representation made by the petitioner and declined the same by an order dated 13.6.2008, impugned in the present writ petition. A reading of the said order shows that the pond (Johar) in question is situate in Khasra No. 137 of village Mewla Maharajpur, District Faridabad. The entire land of the said village has, according to the order, been converted by HUDA for developing residential Sectors No.45 and 46, as early as in the years 1988 to 1991. The result of this development is that the village aforementioned is today surrounded on all sides by the residential colonies established by HUDA. The order further shows that the pond in question is no longer being used as a source of drinking water for cattle, but has turned out to be a collection point for village waste; garbage and a breading ground for mosquitoes, posing a serious threat to the health of the residents of the area. The Commissioner has also observed that since the area is surrounded on all sides by the village Abadi, there is a propensity of encroaching upon the pond at the first opportunity. He has further stated that at the request made by the residents of the village Mewla Maharajpur, the Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, has sanctioned an estimate of Rs.4.03 lacs for supply of good earth for filling up of the pond and converting the same into CWP No. 12287 of 2008 (3) a park. A further amount of Rs.4.92 lacs has also been sanctioned by the Corporation for construction of a boundary wall with a grill around the park and a foot path for the benefit of the residents and users of the park. All these developments are, in the opinion of the Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Faridabad, being carried out in the larger interest of the public residing in the vicinity of the area. We have heard learned counsel for the parties at some length and perused the record. The petitioner's case that the pond in question is being filled up with a view to converting the same into a residential or commercial area by the Corporation, has been denied by the Corporation in the counter filed by it. The Corporation has made it clear that there is no question of using the pond as a residential or commercial area after the same is filled up. The Corporation has further stated that the pond, on being filled up, will be protected against encroachment by building a boundary wall around the same. We have no reason to disbelieve that version. We have also no reason to disbelieve the version given by the respondents that the village Abadi has been provided with adequate water supply and sewerage facilities. The apprehension expressed by the petitioner that the filling up of the pond will affect the subsoil water level also does not appear to be founded. Once the pond is filled up and converted into a park, it will, in our opinion, continue to replenish the ground water level and prevent any depletion of the same. At any rate, the question whether the pond needs to be continued as it is or should be filled up to prevent any health hazards for the residents of the area and replaced by a park, are matters which can be best left for determination of the Municipal authorities. We do not think that an issue, like the one raised in the present petition, can be the subject matter CWP No. 12287 of 2008 (4) of the present proceedings in public interest litigation, especially when, there is nothing that appears to us to be perverse or patently illegal to shock our conscience. The writ petition, accordingly, fails and is dismissed, leaving the parties to bear their own costs. (T.S. THAKUR) CHIEF JUSTICE (HEMANT GUPTA) JUDGE 7.1.2009 ds