Central government obliged to ensure National Highways are safe: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Wednesday observed that the Central government has an obligation to maintain National Highways and keep them safe for highway users [Gyan Prakash v. Union of India & Ors.]..A Bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan held that highway maintenance entails not only keeping such roads in good condition and free from encroachments, but also ensuring adequate safety measures to minimize the risk of accidents."Under the National Highways Act, 1956, Section 4 provides that the National Highways shall vest in the Union of India ... Therefore, it is the obligation of the Central Government to maintain the National Highways. The maintenance of highways includes the obligation to keep them in good condition. It also includes keeping them free of encroachments and, most importantly, providing adequate safety measures to reduce the possibility of accidents," the Court said. .Among other observations, the Court also opined that regular patrolling and CCTV camera-based monitoring of highways is important to ensure that they remain safe and free from encroachment. "Surveillance teams must constantly carry out patrolling so that there is no unauthorised occupation of highway lands. In fact, Highways must be kept under surveillance by CCTV cameras," the order reads. . .The Court was hearing a plea concerning safety on National Highways, which highlighted a report indicating that a staggering 53,181 people lost their lives in highway accidents across India in the year 2017.The petition called for the effective implementation of the Control of National Highways (Land and Traffic) Act, 2002, and the Highway Administration Rules, 2004, to help reduce the number of such accidents..The Court observed that the issues raised in the petition are critically important for highway safety and issued the following directions:- Ministry of Road Transport and Highways of India (MoRTH) and the Joint Secretary (Highways) shall file an affidavit detailing the steps taken under Rule 3 of the Highway Administration Rules, 2004 (as amended in 2019), which mandates formulating Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for service delivery and enforcement of the 2002 Act.- The Highway administration shall widely publicize the ‘RajmargYatra’ mobile app, which was developed by the National Highways Authority of India, and which gives users information about highways, toll plazas, nearby amenities. The app also includes a complaint redressal system and can be used to report accidents or unauthorised occupation at highways. Public awareness about the app is to be spread through print, electronic, and social media. The Highway authorities are also to ensure that information about the app is displayed at all toll and food plazas.- Authorities shall submit details on record of the various categories of complaints lodged through the ‘Rajmargyatra’ mobile application, including those concerning unauthorized occupation of highway lands, along with the actions taken.- NHAI and MoRTH shall submit details of complaints related to unauthorized encroachments received via the app and their resolutions, and operationalize a grievance redressal portal.- The Highway Administration shall issue a detailed SOP outlining the formation of inspection teams, inspection frequency, data collection, and responsibilities.- The Union of India shall establish surveillance teams, including State Police or other forces, for highway patrolling to deter encroachments..The Court has decided to keep the case pending so that it can issue directions, as and when required. The matter is posted next on September 15 to check on compliance with the directions already issued. .Swati Ghildiyal appeared as Amicus Curiae in the matter. Advocate Sneha Botwe appeared for the petitioner, Gyan Prakash, who also appeared in person. Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj and Advocates Gurmeet Singh Makker, Sharath Nambiar, B K Satija, T S Sabarish, Vishnu Shankar Jain, Shrishti Mishra, Sourav Roy, Pranav Bafna, Anshu Deshoande, Vinayak Sharma, Rajiv Pratap Rudy and Gowtham Polanki appeared for various respondent-authorities. .[Read Order]