New Delhi

The Delhi High Court has ruled that the existence of a public urinal and an open garbage bin adjoining a residential property infringes a citizen’s constitutional right to live with dignity in a clean and healthy environment.

Justice Amit Bansal observed that a hygienic surrounding is a core component of a healthy life, and its absence undermines the right to live with dignity guaranteed under the Constitution.

The observations came while the court was hearing a petition filed by a lawyer who challenged the construction of an unauthorised open garbage bin and a public urinal along the eastern wall of his house. The petitioner submitted that around 150 residents of the locality used the bin for waste disposal and that repeated requests to civic authorities to ensure sanitation had gone unheeded.

Taking note of the grievance, the court directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi to immediately dismantle both the open dustbin and the urinal situated next to the petitioner’s residence, terming their presence an undeniable nuisance.

In its order dated February 16, the court held that the proximity of a public urinal and an uncovered garbage bin to a residential house clearly violated the right to life under Article 21, which encompasses the right to live with dignity in a clean and healthy environment.

The judge said the court empathised with the petitioner and other residents of the area, noting that photographs placed on record highlighted the poor and unhygienic conditions prevailing at the site.

The court further observed that such facilities inevitably lead to foul smell and unsanitary surroundings, forcing residents to live in deplorable conditions. It emphasised that civic authorities have a duty to ensure public hygiene without compromising the health and dignity of nearby residents.

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In addition to ordering the removal of the structures, the court instructed the MCD to provide a properly covered dustbin for segregated dry and wet waste and to place it at an appropriate distance from the petitioner’s property.