MURALEEDHARAN Vs. SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner has approached this Court seeking the following reliefs:

(2.) Counter Affidavit is filed by respondents 4 to 10, stating, inter alia, that the petitioner has not received permission from the Ground Water Authority and the Madavoor Panchayat is a necessary party to the Writ Petition. The party respondents are persons living in the neighbourhood and their source of drinking water is from the well and if bore well is dug, it will lower the water table and will result in the wells of the party respondents to be dried up. Several bore wells which were dug, caused the water table to go lower and thus the wells began getting dried up. The single biggest source of ground water depletion and lowering of the water table is over-pumping. Water enters underground water supplies through seepage of rainwater and run off and from the beds of bodies of water. The water travels slowly through layers of soil and rock before finally reaching the water table. Along the way, it is filtered and purified. That process can take a considerable amount of time, depending on the depth of the water table, the make up of the surrounding rock and the amount of water seeping into the soil. If the water does not have a chance to replenish itself after it is pumped out, the water table will drop and the band of water in the ground under the water table will shrink. If over-pumping occurs over a long period, wells will run dry. It is stated that the petitioner came to dig the bore well in the night hours and the party respondents have not caused any resistance as alleged and that they did not lake the law and order into their hands.

(3.) Petitioner has filed a Reply Affidavit. Therein, it is stated that the petitioner built a house on the basis of Ext. P1 permit. It is stated that R. 10(xiii) of the Kerala Panchayat Building Rules categorically states that buildings in category II village panchayats under Group A-1 residential occupancy with total built up area on all floors upto 300 sq. metres including existing and proposed within the plot and the number of storeys limited to two and all single family residential buildings. Hence, as per G.O.(MS). No. 41/11/LSGD dated 14.2.2011 issued by the Local Self Government Department clearly stated that category II village panchayats are not bound to issue permit, if it exceeds the total built up area on all floors which exceed 300 sq. metres. After oxygen, the predominant concern with the entire living organism is water. Petitioner is compelled to extract ground water by digging bore well. The State of Kerala is totally depending on rain falls and now the situation is totally changed and the State depend upon mainly ground water resources for personal use as well as commercial use. It is also stated that the controlling of ground water extraction is mainly persisting in the drought area, like Kasaragod, Punaloor and Palakkad. We heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the party respondents and the learned Government Pleader. Petitioner seeks to dig a bore well. Learned Government Pleader would submit that the area is not a notified area under the Kerala Ground Water (Control & Regulation) Act, 2002. But, according to petitioner, no permit is required from the panchayat for digging a well under the Kerala Panchayat Building Rules, 2011. This argument is premised on the provisions contained in R. 10 of the said Rules. According to the learned counsel, the area in which the petitioner's land is located, falls in a category II village panchayat. He relies on a Notification issued by the Government. According to him, Madavoor Panchayat in which the well is sought to be dug, is not a Class I panchayat. Except all panchayats which are notified as Class I panchayats, the rest are to be treated as category II panchayats. Petitioner may be right in contending that Madavoor Panchayat is not included as Class I Panchayat and hence it may be treated as category II panchayat. But, we must examine whether the petitioner can still contend that for digging a bore well permit is not required under R. 91 of the Kerala Panchay at Building Rules. R. 91 of the Kerala Panchayat Building Rules reads as follows: