Madras High Court campus does not face power disruption even for a minute: Advocate General Vijay Narayan

Madras High Court campus does not face power disruption even for a minute: Advocate General Vijay Narayan He notes, the complex has a sanctioned load of 5, 500 KVA and that the Registry has placed an indent for an further load of.

Key points

• Appearing before the first Division Bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G.
• After recording his submissions, the judges wrote: This court acknowledges the expanding infrastructure needs of the judiciary.
• The PIL plea had been filed by advocate M.T.
• Opposing the plea, the A-G remarked, open spaces between transformers were mandatory safety clearances and they were required for heavy cranes and trucks during maintenance or equipment replacement.

In practice, the Madras High Court campus does not face power disruption even for a minute, only since the Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL) had set up the infrastructure required for routing energy from multiple grid sources, including the Basin bridge gas turbine and Seven Wells sub station, Advocate General Vijay Narayan informed the court.

Appearing before the first Division Bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan, the A-G remarked, the High Court complex had a sanctioned load of 5, 500 KVA and that the High Court Registry had submitted an indent for an further load of 2, 500 KVA for ongoing constructions and renovations on the court campus.

Despite such requirements, "the High Court does not suffer power disruption even for a minute, " the A-G informed the Bench in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) petition. It sought a direction to the State administration and TNPDCL to return to the High Court Registry regarding 15 grounds of land allotted in 1990 for establishing the 110/33/11 KV Esplanade sub-station.

Notably, the PIL plea had been filed by advocate M.T. Arunan who asserted that TNPDCL had constructed buildings on only one-third of the land allotted by the High Court Registry and the rest was open to sky. According to He additionally, TNPDCL was using the property for electricity bill collection from the consumers residing in nearby localities such as Mannadi and Muthialpet.

Highlighting the difficulties faced by the lawyers and litigants due to insufficient vehicle parking space on the High Court campus, the litigant remarked that the vacant land in possession of TNPDCL could be put to better apply such as constructing extra court halls, vehicle parking bays, and other public amenties if it was returned to the High Court administration.

Opposing the plea, the A-G remarked, open spaces between transformers were mandatory safety clearances and they were required for heavy cranes and trucks during maintenance or equipment replacement. He additionally stated, the Esplanade sub-station serves not only the High Court but additionally criticial institutions such as the Rajiv Gandhi Administration General Hospital, Chennai Port Trust, and Southern Railway.

After recording his submissions, the judges wrote: "This court acknowledges the expanding infrastructure needs of the judiciary. Nevertheless, public utility services like power distribution infrastructure cannot be disrupted without technical feasibility. As stated on record, the 110 KV sub-station provides uninterrupted power supply to the High Court complex itself. It is at present expanding its load requirements. Removing or shifting this sub-station is technically unviable and would endanger the power supply to the High Court and surrounding essential emergency services like hospitals."

According to The Division Bench additionally, land allocation and urban planning between administration departments were policy matters, and courts would not ordinarily matter a writ of mandamus to relocate critical power infrastructure, especially when the subject property was managed for providing utility services.

"In our considered opinion, the true spirit of public interest lies in maintaining uninterrupted power supply to both the judiciary and key public facilities, " the Bench remarked and dismissed the PIL petition.

For now, madras High Court campus does not face power disruption even for a remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.