PIL in HC asks why no tender was issued

The BHC asked the petitioner, Sunny Punamiya, to make the state government’s urban development department and Mumbai Heritage Committee parties in the matter.

A day after Municipal Commissioner Ajoy Mehta directed Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a subsidiary of the Union power ministry, to change the white LED lights on Marine Drive to yellow “at the earliest”, a public interest litigation has sought an inquiry into the reason why no tender was issued for installation of LED lights. It called the process of changing the streetlights “arbitrary, corrupt and haphazard”.

The Bombay High Court asked the petitioner, Sunny Punamiya, to make the state government’s urban development department and Mumbai Heritage Committee parties in the matter.

The PIL alleged that the BMC had failed to follow established government rules of issuing tenders before carrying out the change.

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According to the PIL, in reply to a Right to Information (RTI) application seeking to know if a tender was issued before installation of white LED lights in place of yellow sodium vapour lights, the BMC responded that no tender was issued. It was further revealed through RTI that no permission was obtained from the Mumbai Heritage Committee either.

“The reply also stated that the work on changing the yellow sodium vapour lights to white LED lights on Marine Drive was carried out on a pilot basis. Since it is a pilot project of the Central government, no direction was given regarding the colour of LED lights installed,” said the PIL.

“There has been arbitrary, corrupt and haphazard work by the BMC that resulted in several dark patches on Marine Drive as well as destruction of visual and aesthetic beauty of Queen’s Necklace,” it added.

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