Denial Of Access To Road To Residents Of Hilly Areas Would Tantamount To Denial Of Constitutionally Guaranteed Right To Life: HP HC [Read Order]

The Bench of Justices Sureshwar Thakur and Chander Bhusan Barowalia was hearing the plea of petitioners, seeking a mandamus upon the respondents, to operationalize the Dharampur-Rajpura road and declare it fit for plying of vehicles thereon, hence, for enabling the residents of the area concerned to ensure the plying thereon(s) of HRTC buses for them, thereafter, availing the facility of making road communication(s) therefrom.

Court's Analysis

The High Court cited the ruling of the Apex Court in the case of State Of Himachal Pradesh & Anr vs Umed Ram Sharma & Ors AIR 1986 SC 847, wherein the Court had observed that for residents of hilly areas, access to roads is the access to life.

Further, the Court observed that the respondent is a welfare state, and so it is the duty bound under the Law to provide access to road facilities to the petitioners and other residents, who upon the completion of the public road (Dharampur­Rajpura) would enjoy the facility of plying their vehicles thereon(s), and also would enjoy the facility of plying of HRTC buses.

With the aforesaid observation, the writ petition was allowed and the respondents were directed to provide the road facility to the petitioners and other residents.