The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court has ordered the Vice Chairman, Lucknow Development Authority to consider shifting the cremation ground located in Jankipuram, Lucknow to another location.
The Division Bench of Justice Attau Rahman Masoodi and Justice Narendra Kumar Johari passed this order while hearing a PIL filed by Brajesh Kumar Gupta.
A public interest litigation has been filed by the petitioner who himself is a resident of the area wherein the alleged cremation ground is situated.
In this petition, the interest of the petitioner is inseparable but the Court is not swayed away by any such objection to reject the prayer for the reason that the impact of cremation of dead bodies is quite measurable in a densely populated area and the same calls for attention at the end of administrative authorities.
The Court, in the facts and circumstances of the case, would expect the Vice Chairman, Lucknow Development Authority to look into the grievance of the petitioner sympathetically and consider relocation of the cremation ground at an appropriate place so that the environmental issues as well as other causes giving rise to the PIL are duly addressed.
“We are conscious of the fact that a cremation ground is a part and parcel of the human society and it must be available at a convenient place in all the inhabited areas. The Development Authorities are bound to be aware of this requirement at the time of urban planning. Without elaborating much on such an aspect, the Court would leave it open to the Development Authority to consider the matter with promptitude. We hope and trust that the needful is done without allowing the issues to multiply. The Commissioner, Lucknow Municipal Corporation may also extend necessary help for adopting adequate measures,” the Court said while disposing of the petition.