Adarsh demolition: Onus on society, says Maharashtra govt official

A day after the environment ministry recommended demolition of the 31-storey Adarsh Housing Society building here within three months, a senior Maharashtra government official today said the onus is on the society.

"The environment ministry has asked the society to demolish the building. So the onus is on the society," the official said.

The society is accused of flouting coastal regulation zone (CRZ) norms and was built on land reserved for Kargil war martyrs. Kin of politicians and bureaucrats are members of the controversial society.

To a query on the state government's role in implementing the decision taken by the ministry, the official said "the state environment department will take a call on the issue."

The society has been asked to remove the structure on its own within three months failing which the environment ministry will be "constrained to enforce this direction and undertake action" under sections of the Environment Protection Act, it said in its voluminous order.

"Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society has violated the very spirit of CRZ (Coastal Regulation Zone) Notification, 1991 by not even acknowledging the need for clearance under this notification...Ignorance of law can never be an excuse for non-compliance," environment minister Jairam Ramesh has said.