New Delhi Mar 31 PTI The Supreme Court Thursday said that municipal corporation of Faridabad is liable to pay solatium of Rs 2000 per month to those who are eligible to get EWS flats under a rehabilitation scheme for residents of Khori village where unauthorised structures coming under the Aravali forest area were demolished until issuance of possession letterThe apex court was informed by the counsel appearing for the civic body that 1027 applicants have been found eligible and they would be allotted flats on permanent basis by end of AprilA bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar was informed by the counsel appearing for some petitioners that flats given in the provisional allotment to the eligible applicants are not in habitable conditionSenior advocate Sanjay Parikh appearing for some of the petitioners said the payment of solatium which was for a period of six months must continue till the flats given are in a habitable conditionUntil permanent accommodation is offered to the eligible persons the corporation shall be liable to pay ex-gratia solatium amount of Rs 2000 per month until the date of issuance of possession letter by the corporation said the bench also comprising Justices A S Oka and C T RavikumarThe bench said the fact that the premises are in habitable condition be certified by the commissioner of the municipal corporation and possession letter can be issued only after it is certified that the premises allotted are in habitable condition and can be occupied immediatelyThe civic body had last year told the top court that they will be making a payment of rentsolatium of Rs 2000 per month to eligible applicants from November 1 2021 for six months or actual physical possession of flats whichever is earlierDuring the hearing on Thursday Parikh told the bench that nobody has occupied the flats which were allotted provisionally as they are in bad conditionThe corporations counsel said they had scrutinized around 5000 applications out of which 1027 applicants were are found eligible under the schemeHe said the corporation had made provisional allotment but nobody came to actually occupy the flatsThe corporations counsel said they had told the apex court last year that by April 30 2022 they would give them final possession of the flats The flats should be made habitable which you have not done so far the bench observed Those who are eligible and those who could not occupy the premises on the ground that flat is inhabitable they should be compensated it saidThe bench noted that it has been brought to its notice that the plot on which unauthorized structures were removed is being misused by the localsIt directed the Superintendent of Police Faridabad to provide necessary assistance to the corporation to ensure that no encroachment or misutilization of the area or plot in question takes place in futureThe bench said as the corporation is already working on a plan for development of the entire area the secretary of the forest department may issue appropriate instructions to facilitate plantation of trees thereIt has posted the matter for further hearing on April 26Meanwhile the bench reserved its judgement on the separate pleas which raises issues regarding forest and non-forest land in Haryana The apex court is seized of the pleas which raised the issue regarding forest and non-forest land in reference to interplay between provisions of the PLPA 1900 the Forest Conservation Act 1980 and the land which forms part of development plan under the Faridabad Complex Regulation and Development Act 1971In a status report filed earlier in the top court the municipal corporation of Faridabad had given details including that of the modified timeline for the process of allotment under the rehabilitation scheme to eligible applicants of Khori jhuggisOn June 7 last year the top court had directed Haryana and Faridabad municipal corporation to remove all encroachments consisting of around 10000 residential constructions in the Aravali forest area near the village saying land grabbers cannot take refuge of rule of law and talk of fairness PTI ABA SA

New Delhi Mar 31 PTI The Supreme Court Thursday asked the Centre to consider the representation of some aspirants who could not appear in the UPSC civil services main examination after being infected with COVID-19 and are now seeking an additional attempt in light of the recommendation made in a recent parliamentary committee reportIn the March 24 report the committee has said that keeping in view the hardships faced by the student community during the first and second waves of COVID-19 it recommends the government to change its mind and sympathetically consider the demand of civil services examination CSE aspirants and grant an extra attempt with corresponding age relaxation to all candidatesThe Centre had last week told the apex court that additional attempt in the Union Public Service Commission UPSC civil services examination is not possibleA bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar was hearing a plea filed by three aspirants who had cleared the UPSC 2021 prelims exam but could not appear in all papers of the main exam after testing positive for COVID-19 and are now seeking an extra attempt to appear in the examsAdvocate Prashant Bhushan who was appearing for an intervenor in the matter apprised the apex court about the parliamentary committee reportHas the government considered this committee report before taking the decision the bench also comprising Justices A S Oka and C T Ravikumar askedAdditional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati appearing for the Centre said that she do not have instructions on thisYou may consider it in light of this recommendation the bench observed adding it is open for the government to change its mindThe bench asked the petitioners and the intervenor to make representation to the authority which would consider it in light of the committee reportIn light of the recommendation of the parliamentary committee we dispose of this petition and application with a direction to the appropriate authority to re-examine the representations made by the petitioners and similarly placed persons afresh and take appropriate decision the bench said The bench made clear that it has not expressed any opinion on the merits of the matterThe UPSC had recently told the top court there is no provision for holding re-examination in case a candidate fails to appear in the test on the scheduled date for any reasons including ailment or accident incapacitating him to take the examIn its affidavit filed in the court the Centre had said that the CSE is conducted by UPSC annually in accordance with the CSE Rules notified by the Department of Personnel and Training DoPT every year for a particular CSEIt had said the matter of compensatoryextra attempt has been adjudicated by the apex court in the past against the plea of hardships faced by the aspirants due to the COVID-19 pandemic but it was not grantedThe affidavit had referred to the judgement and order passed by the top court last year in February and July 2021 on separate pleasIt had said after the July last year order a number of representations were received in the DoPT putting forth the same demand of compensatoryextra attemptThe matter has been considered and it has not been found feasible to change the existing provisions regarding number of attempts and age-limit in respect of the CSE it had saidIt had said the existing age range for admission to CSE is 21 to 32 years with relaxation for certain categories of candidates and the permissible number of attempts is also six with relaxations for certain categories of candidatesIn its separate affidavit filed in the apex court the UPSC had said that any decision regarding age relaxation and compensatoryextra attempt in the civil services examination is a policy matter which falls under the domain of the DoPTWhile two of the three petitioners had to leave the main exam held from January 7 to 16 in-between after appearing in some initial papers the third aspirant could not appear in any of the papers due to COVIDThe petitioners in their plea filed through advocate Shashank Singh had said that they tested positive for COVID-19 in the RTPCR test reports dated January 13 14 and January 6 respectivelyThe plea had said the petitioners could not take the UPSC mains examination after testing positive for COVID-19 and owing to the restrictions imposed under the strict quarantine guidelines of the governmentAlso there was absence of any kind of policy of UPSC which could provide arrangements for such petitioners who were COVID positive during the span of mains examination or before it it had saidThe petitioners are approaching this court under Article 32 and seeking a direction to the Respondent UPSC to extend them an additional extra attempt to appear in the examination or in alternate make some arrangement to appear in the rest of papers which the petitioners could not give before the publication of result of civil service mains examination 2021 the plea had said PTI ABA SA

New Delhi Mar 29 PTI The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it would hear the Mullaperiyar Dam matter on March 31 after the Tamil Nadu government informed it that they have had some dialogue on the issue which is going onWe understand the complexities of it We can give time a bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar said after senior advocate Shekhar Naphade appearing for Tamil Nadu requested that the matter be heard on ThursdayThe apex court is hearing arguments on the pleas raising issues pertaining to the Mullaperiyar Dam which was built in 1895 on the Periyar river in Idukki district of KeralaAt the outset Tamil Nadus counsel told the bench also comprising Justices A S Oka and C T Ravikumar that the matter be taken up for hearing on ThursdayWe have had some dialogue and it is on he saidSenior advocate Jaideep Gupta appearing for Kerala said that Tamil Nadu has given them something and they are working on itThey have given us something We are working on it We will give it to them It will take just a little longer than we thought Gupta saidNo issues the bench said and posted the matter for hearing on March 31On March 24 the top court had suggested to Tamil Nadu and Kerala that issues regarding structural safety of the 126-year-old Mullaperiyar Dam can be left to be dealt with by the supervisory committee which can be strengthenedThe apex court had observed that issue raised by Kerala which has said that process for setting up a new dam in the downstream reaches of the existing dam should start can be debated discussed and resolved by the supervisory committee which can make its recommendation on thisThe bench had observed that a holistic approach should be adopted and a comprehensive measure should be there to strengthen the systemThe counsel appearing for Tamil Nadu had told the bench that he would take instructions on this issue as these are sensitive matters He had said the state of Tamil Nadu is interested in retaining the damThe bench had said the issue is affecting both the states and they can work out a mechanism so that interest of both the sides is secured and nobody blames each otherThe counsel appearing for Kerala had last week told the bench that the process for setting up a new dam in the downstream reaches of the existing dam should start and the upper rule level of Mullaperiyar Dam should be 140 feet and not 142 feetThe Kerala government had earlier told the apex court that no amount of rejuvenation can perpetuate the dam and there is a limit to the number of years one can keep dams in service through maintenance and strengthening measuresIn its response to the affidavit filed by Kerala the state of Tamil Nadu had earlier said that repeated assertion of Kerala and petitioners from there in the pleas filed from time to time seek to decommission of the existing dam and construction of a new dam which is wholly impermissible in the light of the apex court verdict on the safety of the damThe dam has been found to be hydrologically structurally and seismically safe Tamil Nadu had said PTI ABA ABA DV DV

New Delhi Mar 22 PTI The Supreme Court Tuesday said it would not issue notice on the fresh petition filed in the matter pertaining to the 126-year-old Mullaperiyar dam as all the broad issues are already there in the main matter and it will consider themA bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar adjourned the hearing on the pleas after the counsel appearing for Tamil Nadu requested the apex court to take it up on Wednesday saying he intends to take instructions in respect of some documents which were filed by the other sideThe top court is seized of a batch of pleas raising issues pertaining to the dam which was built in 1895 on the Periyar river in Idukki district of KeralaThe bench also comprising Justices A S Oka and C T Ravikumar was told that a fresh petition has also been filed in the matter and the plea was listed for hearing on TuesdayNow we are not issuing any notice in any matter in the case The issue is already there All broad issues are there in the first matter We will consider it in the first matter itself the bench said adding the fresh plea will be listed along with the main matterAt the outset senior advocate Shekhar Naphade appearing for Tamil Nadu requested the bench to take up the matter for hearing on Wednesday saying the other side has served some documents to them this morning itselfAs requested by Mr Naphade not to be called out today as he intends to take instructions in respect of new documentsaffidavit filed by the other party which has been served on him today the bench saidThe bench observed it is willing to start hearing the matter right now but if there is some difficulty on one side the court has to accommodate all the partiesThe Tamil Nadu government had last month told the apex court that it is not justifiable to have a fresh review on the safety of the dam before carrying out the strengthening measures ordered by the top court earlierThe state had said this in its response to a status report filed in January by the Central Water Commission CWC and the supervisory committee which had said that a fresh review of the safety of the dam is now due and is required to be undertakenIn this water year 2021-22 water was stored in the dam at a level of 142 ft from November 30 2021 for about 18 days and all the parameters of the dam were found to be within limits Hence there is no ground or necessity to have a fresh review on the safety of the dam for storing water up to 142 ft now the state had saidIt had sought a direction to Kerala to cooperate and provide all necessary assistance in a time-bound manner so that the remaining strengthening and maintenance work as directed by the apex court in February 2006 and May 2014 as well as other decisions of the supervisory committee are implemented in letter and spirit during the next four months before the ensuing southwest monsoonIn a status report filed in the top court in January the CWC and the supervisory committee had said that aspects pertaining to the safety of dam were carried out during 2010 to 2012 by the empowered committee constituted under the directions of the apex court in 2010It had said the empowered committee based upon the investigations tests and studies carried out by apex national organisations and specialist expert agencies had concluded that Mullaperiyar dam was found to be safe in all respects -- hydrologically structurally and seismicallyOn January 11 the apex court had said that litigation about the dam is not adversarial as this is public interest litigation in the sense that safety security and health issues of the people staying around the dam are involved in the matterThe Kerala government had earlier told the apex court that no amount of rejuvenation can perpetuate the dam and there is a limit to the number of years one can keep dams in service through maintenance and strengthening measuresIt had said the only permanent solution for removing the eternal threat owing to the safety concerns of the dam and for protecting the safety of lakhs of people living the downstream of Mullaperiyar dam is to build a new dam in the downstream reaches of the existing damIn an affidavit filed before the apex court the Kerala government had urged that the proposal to fix the upper rule level of Mullaperiyar dam at 142 feet on September 20 as formulated by Tamil Nadu may be avoidedIn its response to the affidavit filed by Kerala Tamil Nadu had said that repeated assertion of Kerala and petitioners from there in the pleas filed from time to time seek to decommission of the existing dam and construction of a new dam which is wholly impermissible in the light of the apex court verdict on the safety of the damThe dam has been found to be hydrologically structurally and seismically safe Tamil Nadu had said PTI ABA SA