Gujarat HC for policy on amusement activities

AHMEDABAD: While hearing the suo motu PIL on the Harni lake tragedy, where 12 schoolchildren and two teachers drowned on Jan 18, the Gujarat high court insisted on a policy governing amusement activities at waterbodies across the state. The court also called for officials to be held accountable for accidents.

The bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Aniruddha Mayee lashed out at the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) for failing to supervise the boating service operator at Motnath Lake in Harni. It directed the municipal commissioner to file an affidavit explaining the terms and conditions of the contract with the operator, Kotia Projects. On whether notice was issued to the contractor for not adhering to the terms, the court said, "He was running the contract with impunity."

The HC sought the municipal commissioner's affidavit after the CJ commented, "There was a complete lack of supervision on the part of the corporation. They slept after giving the contract. This is apparent."

Justice Mayee concurred, "Nobody supervises all these facilities once a contract is given. Officials are responsible for this. The agreement can be breached and it's your (civic body's) duty to supervise." The court called the VMC's actions 'eyewash' and said the authorities only woke up after the tragedy.

The state government submitted an action-taken report and advocate general Kamal Trivedi said all amusement activities at waterbodies have been halted. He added that contractors and civic bodies have been asked for reports on how they are managing these activities.

The bench said reports should be called for from all individuals, officials and departments. The bench added, "The state government must frame a policy for everyone. If you are framing a policy, accountability is the first step. A contractor is a contractor, but the accountability lies with the officer of the corporation."

The court appointed advocates Hemang Shah and Trusha Patel as amicus curiae and asked them to prepare a list of all waterbodies in the state and whether they are under the jurisdiction of civic bodies or the forest department.

"We propose expanding the scope from this lake to all waterbodies in the state for a comprehensive plan to manage waterbodies so that people can have fun safely. All necessary safety measures should be taken," it said.

The amicus curiae suggested ensuring adequate compensation for the victims' families, compassionate jobs and fixing liability for the tragedy on all stakeholders. However, the court disagreed with the suggestion of providing jobs to the victims' kin, stating that the state government had already taken adequate measures by halting all these amusement activities. The high court also instructed the state government to communicate to school authorities the precautions and measures to be taken during excursions.