The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday directed the Madurai Corporation to file a status report on the cleaning of Panaiyur and Anuppanadi canals every month.
A division bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Nisha Banu, hearing the case, had earlier directed the Corporation to clean the canals and remove encroachments along them in accordance with law. The court had also observed that surveillance and cleaning up operations should continue to prevent dumping of garbage and waste materials.
In an earlier status report, the Corporation said that the cleaning process and removal of waste from the canals were under progress and encroachments were being removed.
The division bench had initiated a suo motu public interest litigation petition taking cognisance of a news report published in The Hindu on the dumping of garbage and waste in Panaiyur and Anuppanadi canals.
The Hindu had reported that due to the waste being dumped in the canals, mosquito infestation had reached worrying levels. The residents of the area where the canals pass through had expressed their anxiety over the outbreak of dengue, said the report.
The report had also said that residents resorted to dumping of waste in the canals as the inner lanes of the area did not have door-to-door collection of waste or adequate number of dustbins.
