Red tape across the beachfront

Most would consider obtaining permission to conduct a private event, including even a wedding, on the Marina or Elliot’s beach an impossible task. But all that are required are a simple No-Objection Certificate (NOC) from the police and clearance from the Greater Chennai Corporation. However, the process is not so straightforward, mired as it is in red-tapism due to lack of transparency and absence of a regulated procedure. 

Beaches are coastal commons as specified by the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification of 2011. But questions on the citizen’s right to them arose following a recent controversy over a ticketed event held at a beachfront property. Animal rights activists opposed the event, alleging that it would disturb the nesting Olive Ridley sea turtles. 

As per current practice, the Greater Chennai Corporation is the designated authority to grant permission for events on the beaches within the city limits, which it does after receiving an NOC from the police. “Based on the NOC, the concerned zonal officer and Regional Deputy Commissioners (RDCs) would coordinate.” 

A zonal level official said the application for permission should be submitted to RDCs. “The information should include the details of the event like date, time and the expected attendance. If the programme is not controversial and would not create public nuisance, permission is usually granted within a couple of days. No fee is charged for this process,” the official said. 

However, as experienced by several Chennaiites, the scenario on ground is not so straightforward.

Detailing what happened behindthe-scenes while seeking green signal for the recently-concluded Urur Olcott Kuppam festival at the Elliot’s Beach, Pooja Kumar, a researcher with Coastal Resource Centre and a volunteer for the festival, said, “The permission was granted by the Corporation Commissioner and Zonal Officer, but the entire procedure was arbitrary.” They were asked to pay Rs 15,000 as conservancy charges last year, which was only Rs 2,000 in 2016. This year, the charges was fixed at Rs 2,000 again. 

In 2016, the Corporation had denied permission to conduct a Frisbee tournament on the Elliot’s Beach citing ‘environmental reasons’. Recalling the incident, Pooja added, “Environmental impact is a criterion that is applied as per the will of the civic body. Big food festivals, which leads to a section of the beach being cordoned off besides causing massive littering, are given permission. But permission is not easily granted for events like a Frisbee tournament or a human chain.” 

“There is an urgent need to regularise the procedure, the lack of which is discouraging the use of the beach, which is a public space, for public events,” said Pooja. 

Speaking to DT Next, Corporation Commissioner D Karthikeyan said, “While we do not allow any event on the Marina beach, we do give permission for Elliot’s Beach, provided the sound levels are not too high. We charge a basic conservancy fee, based on the number of people likely to attend the event. This is important as most events leave behind a lot of litter.”

Activists claim vital details about the application procedure are not available in public domain. 

When questioned, the Commissioner added, “We will standardize the procedure, making it transparent and available on our website.” 

“The permission from the corporation is necessary only for those events held on the beach sands. For those on service lanes near the beach, a police permission is sufficient,” said Archana Sekar, who has experience in seeking permission for various events. 

Lamenting that permission from corporation often takes more than a week due to bureaucratic tangles, Archana said the entire process needs to be streamlined. Till then, the rights of residents to hold their memorable event on the city beaches would only remain a dream.

For decades, Marina, the second longest beach in the world, remained people’s beach. The vast expanse of space accommodated thousands on special days, with many coming from the far fringes of the city to spend an evening near the sea. But all that changed after the jallikattu stir of 2017. It brought thousands of people to the beach, who camped on for days together as the carnival turned political and created history. But now, Marina Beach has a blanket ban on any large gathering. Police presence is always maintained to prevent any such protest – probably ever again at least in the near future.

As accessing public beaches appear far too cumbersome, many event organisers are choosing private resorts with beach access to circumvent the bureaucratic hassles. But it comes with a hefty bill, and with restrictions in place. Deepa Kalkuri’s wedding was held in a resort on East Coast Road (ECR) last year, where the resort management took the responsibility of getting the requisite permissions. But they were told to wrap up the celebrations on the sands before 11 pm. “We couldn’t serve alcohol on the beach either,” she said.