India News | Don't Take Lightly Orders to Ensure Street Lighting in Kochi: Kerala HC to State Govt

Kochi, Nov 16 (PTI) The Kerala High Court on Tuesday warned the state government not to take lightly or casually its orders to ensure street lighting in Kochi city, as dark roads lead to increase in crimes.

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"Don't take court orders casually. Half of the street lights in the city are not working or are switched off. Citizens have a right to expect properly lit streets. How can you (state) take things so lightly," Justice Devan Ramachandran said to the government.

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The court said it will call the Secretary concerned to appear before it if its orders to ensure proper lighting in the streets of Kochi are not complied with.

"Do you know how many horrendous accidents happen in the dark roads? Lots of crimes are committed in the dark. You cannot take lightly the lack of street lights in a metro city like Kochi," the court said.

Justice Ramachandran also said that during a recent trip he undertook, he not only saw the absence of street lights, but there were power cables hanging low in various places.

"So many (power) cables are hanging dangerously low, but no action has been taken. What if someone is electrocuted?" the court asked.

The court directed the state to ensure its orders are not taken casually and that they are complied with.

It was hearing a matter related to the lack of street lights in the city of Kochi.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)