Sengupta, J. - (1.) The petitioners herein are the monthly tenants admittedly under the respondent No. 5 who is the landlord and/or owner of the building and premises No. 11, Middleton Row, Calcutta. The petitioners are occupying various flats on diverse floors of the said building as mentioned in the petition.
(2.) The grievance of the writ petitioners as mentioned in the petition is that inadequate supply of wholesome filtered water to their respective flats. There is water supply line provided by the Calcutta Municipal Corporation to the said premises through 1" ferrule. Subsequently without any notice the said ferrule was decreased from 1" to 1/2" which resulted inadequate supply of filtered water. This filtered water, is reserved in an overhead storage tank. So, the writ petitioner made a presentation to the appropriate officials of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation complaining of such illegal change of ferrule from 1" to 1/2" and reasuling inadequate supply of filtered water and asked for restoration of adequate supply of water through 1 " ferrule and further to grant permission for repairing of the old tubewell and/or for installation of new deep tubewell to meet the inadequate supply of water. The corporation authority, however, did not respond to the same and as a result thereof the petitioners herein filed this writ petition for the following reliefs : "(a) A writ of mandamus do issue directing the Municipal Respondents to restore the normal supply of Filtered Water thereby restoring the size of the Ferrule as was existing prior to March, 1998(1") forthwith in the said premises 'New Asiatic Mansions' being 11, Middleton Row, Calcutta; (b) Alternatively the Municipal Authorities be directed to allow the petitioner to sink and/or install a New Deep Tubewell and/or repair the old one at the costs and expenses of the petitioners without insisting for approval of the Life Insurance Corporation of India, upon payment or Licence fees as required under the statute. (c) The Life Insurance Corporation of India and its officials should also be directed to grant approval and/or sanction and/or permission in the prescribed form either for Sinking New Tubewell or for repairing the old one at the costs and expenses of the petitioners and in the event no such permission and/or approval is given a direction be issued upon the Municipal Authorities to ignore such permission and to allow the petitioners to install and/or repair the Deep Tubewell upon payment of licence fee as required under the statute; d) A writ of certiorari do issue directing the respondents and/or each of them to produce all relevant records to this case before this Hon'ble Court so that conscionable justice be done upon perusing the same; e) A writ of prohibition do issue prohibiting the Life Insurance Corporation of India and/or its officials to cause any obstruction and/or inconvenience to the petitioners to get normal supply of water either from the Corporation or by sinking and/or repairing Deep Tubewell at their own costs and expenses; Rule Nisi in terms of prayers (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) above and the rule be made absolute if no cause is shown by the respondents and/or any one of them; g) Interim order of injunction do issue directing the respondents Municipal Authorities to restore the normal supply of Filtered Water in the Premises No. 11, Middleton Row, Calcutta-700071 thereby changing the Ferrule Size as was existing prior to March, 1998 forthwith; h) The Life Insurance Corporation of India and its Officials be directed to accord approval and/or permission in the prescribed form for obtaining sanction for Sinking a New Deep Tubewell and/or repairing the old one at the expenses of the petitioners/tenants of the concerned premises; i) Alternatively the Municipal Authorities be directed to allow the petitioners either to Sink a New Deep Tubewell or to repair the old one upon payment of licence fee without insisting upon the petitioners to get the approval of the owner of the concerned premises being the Life Insurance Corporation of India; j) Interim order in terms of prayers (g), (h) and (i) above; k) Costs; 1) Such other or further order or orders, direction or directions be made as Your Lordships may seem fit and proper."
(3.) When this writ petition was moved at the ad interim stage an order was passed by His Lordship the Hon'ble Mr. Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose on 14th May, 1998 directing the Calcutta Municipal Corporation to take all necessary steps to provide water supply at the premises in question in accordance with law within two weeks from the date of communication of the order. If necessary the writ petitioner shall pay the costs for change of ferrule at the said premises. The writ petitioner shall be at liberty to repair the tubewell, if there be any, in the premises in question which is not working now, at their own cost. Let the matter appear in the list one week after summer vacation.;