Bombay High Court is holding the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) responsible and has directed them to take steps to demolish 48 obstacles in the way of the approach surfaces of the runways of Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. The corporation has also been ordered to file an affidavit of compliance by August 19.
According to Live Law, the obstacles also include several buildings whose height will have to be reduced. These 48 have neither complied with DGCA’s demolition orders nor have they filed appeals.
This comes after the High Court heard a plea on dangers to aircraft by high-rises near the airport. A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice M S Karnik was hearing public interest litigation filed by advocate Yashwant Shenoy, seeking action against the construction of buildings above the prescribed height limit in the vicinity of the city airport.
As per Shenoy, these buildings pose a risk to aircraft taking off and landing at the airport here and may someday lead to an untoward incident. Chief Justice Datta said the issue concerns everyone. He also referred to the recently released Ajay Devgn-starrer Hindi film Runway 34.
“I happened to see the movie Runway 34. Nothing depends on the pilot. Everything depends on the air traffic control,” Chief Justice Datta said.
“We think the pilot has announced that we are set for landing or take off and the temperature outside is so and so and everything is fine. But it all depends on several other factors. One mistake here and there…anything can happen,” he said.
