FEARS OVER UID HAVE MERIT: SC
The SC said that an Aadhaar authentication failure could lead to a denial of benefits to the needy and this concern raised by the petitioners challenging the unique identification scheme would have to taken seriously.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court rebuked the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Wednesday for its failure to protect the iconic Taj Mahal even as an ASI report traced the monument’s loss of sheen to insect breeding in the Yamuna river. The Centre said that it is looking at a suggestion by the apex court to appoint international experts for the preservation of the Taj.
ASI’S report suggested that stagnation of water in the Yamuna and high content of phosphorus in it had turned the river into a breeding ground for insects that form patches on the walls of the 17th century marble monument every summer. The water level of the Yamuna should be raised and sources of pollution restricted immediately to stop algae formation on the river, the report said.
But an SC bench comprising justices MB Lokur and Deepak Gupta said the ASI was at fault in not conserving the Taj, and asked the Centre and Uttar Pradesh government to use the services of a trust involved in conserving heritage monuments. When ASI counsel ADN Rao explained that the department “is doing its best to maintain the monument”, the bench shot back: “According to you there is no problem. Look at the photographs. Do you want to say what you have been doing is sufficient? Remove ASI. Look for someone else.”
Additional solicitor general AS Nadkarni told the bench that the ministry of environment and forests was considering the SC’S suggestion to appoint international experts to look into protection and preservation of the Taj Mahal. The bench also asked the Centre to involve advocate, MC Mehta, on whose petition the top court is monitoring the developments in the area to protect the Taj, while preparing a vision document to save the Mughal era monument. “Taj Mahal doesn’t belong to anybody. It’s not an adversarial litigation. He [Mehta] is an expert. You should seek his inputs while preparing the document,” Justice Lokur said.
Nadkarni and additional solicitor general, Tushar Mehta, appearing for Uttar Pradesh, promised the court to discuss the matter at the highest level in the government. The Centre was also asked by the court to file its response to the ASI report and Mehta’s submissions highlighting how the monument is getting discoloured.
Rao admitted to the problem and said it will remain until the stagnation of water continues on the riverbed, which has become a dumping ground for waste. The high number of visitors to the Taj was cited a reason behind the discolouration of its marble flooring. At this, the bench asked him whether the ASI provided socks to them. Rao replied that ASI gave socks only to “high-end” dignitaries; common visitors carried their own socks, he said.
According to the ASI, the insects in the Yamuna disappear during the winters and re-surface in April. The breeding, ASI said, started in 2015. The insects never surfaced earlier because they were consumed by small fish that have perished because of high level of toxic waste in the waters of the Yamuna. ASI said other monuments in the vicinity of the Yamuna are also getting affected.