MADARSA ROAD RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION Vs. LT GOVERNOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners-first petitioner being anassociationof residents living in Madarsa Road which is primarily a residential area andthe second petitioner being a resident of that area, have filed this petition underArticle 226 of the Constitution seeking various directions to the respondents tostop the plying of heavy vehicles in the area to control the pollution and to declarethe area a silence zone. When the petition was originally filed there were threerespondents. The fourth respondent Municipal Corporation of Delhi was impleaded by the order of this Court as that is the authority who is to put barricades.There cannot be any dispute that the problem of congestion in the area is acuteand because of plying of vehicles, particularly heavy and medium transportvehicles, some time the road in the locality gets blocked causing greatinconvenience to the residents, not to metion the pollution caused byemissionof fuel from the vehicles, blowing of horns and danger to the residents more sochildren. Even the Principal of the Delhi Engineering College, Delhi, alsocomplained to the authorities that the condition of traffic on Madarsa Roadadjoining the Delhi Engineering College Campus was chaotic and was posing athreat to the safety and life of the college students and staff. He said on the otherside of the Madarsa Road there was a residential area and that in the midst ofresidential area and the campus of the college some transport companies hadestabished their offices/godowns and they load/unload their goods and for thatreason the trucks and other heavy vehicles cause traffic obstructions. ThePrincipal also complained about the noise pollution which he said distrubed thestudents during their classes, laboratory, library and hostel and at times the noisewas intolerable. He also complained about environmental pollution and risk to theusers of the road by the residents, students and staff. The Principal, therefore,suggested putting up barricades at appropriate height to prevent the heavyvehicles coming to Madarsa Road and also suggested putting up speed breakersto control the speed of the vehicles using the road. Lastly, he said that consideringthe safety of students and staff necessary action to prevent the menace indicatedby him be taken.

(2.) The petitioner has brought on record a notification issued by the DistrictMagistrate in 1972 under Section 33 of the Bombay Police Act as extended to Delhiprohibiting plying ad parking of all heavy transport vehicles including buses onthe Nigam Bodh Ghat Marg, Madarsa Road and Church Road, all in the KashmereGate area from the date of issue of the notification which is 15/05/1972. We aretold that this notification is still in force. The Deputy Commissioner of Police(Traffic) in his affidavit stated that an order was issued on 4/10/1993 underRegulation 30(1) of the Delhi Control of Vehicular and other Traffic on Roads andStreets Regulation, 1980, prohibiting the plying of HTVs except D.T.C. buses,School buses, M.C.D. and N.D.M.C., DESU and other Government vehicles, on theMadarsa Road. He said that Madarsa Road was "No. Entry Zone" for HTVs andthat effective measures were taken to entorce the order. He also said that the areahad been declared as silence zone and all effective steps were taken to enforce thatorder. For the purpose of this petition we do not think it is necessary for us to gointo the question as to for what period opening of the verge on the Ring Roadshould be allowed. In the supplementary affidavit filed by the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) he indicated that from October to December 1993 as manyas 21 vehicles were challand on Chuch Road and 12 at Madarsa Road for violatingthe prohibitory orders. He further said that sign boards had been up/erected atboth ends of these roads indicating that there was no entry for HTVs throughout24 hours.

(3.) During the pendency of this petition various directions were issued fromtime to time. After the Municipal Corporation of Delhi was impleaded, it hadobjection to putting up of barriers on two counts:(l)thatthebusesof schools andEngineering College come to Madarsa Road, and (2) that various transporters whoare having their offices in the area would be affected. Other respondents alsostated that at times because of procession, etc, the main Sham Nath Marg(Kashmere Gate Road) gets blocked and this traffic is diverted on the Madarsa Road. Mr. Aggarwal, learned Counsel for the Government of the NationalCapital Territory of Delhi, stated that permenent barricades would hamper thefree flow of traffic when Sham Nath Marg is blocked for one reason or the other.He said only on such occasions Madarsa Road be used to ease the traffic. We askedthe respondent M.C.D. to make a survey of the area as to how many school busescome to the Madarsa Road and then to talk to the parents of the children who usethe school buses. An affidavit has been filed by the Zonal Assistant Engineer,M.C.D. stating that he did get the views of the parents of the school-going childrenelicited and survey showed that almost 99% of the parents had no objection forinstalltion of the barriers on the Madarsa Road. Mr. Aggarwal also brought onrecord a site plan of the area showing the Church Road and Madarsa Road. We findit is unfortunate that in spite of prohibitory orders the Madarsa Road is being usedby the HTVs and MMVs and scant respect is paid to the order declaring the area tobe silence zone.