Indian Express 21.05.2010
110 kiosks razed, land worth Rs 10 cr cleared
Express News Service Tags : encroachment, corporation Posted: Fri May 21 2010, 00:01 hrs
Mohali: Nearly 110 kiosks in Phase XI here were removed in an anti-encroachment drive held by the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) on Thursday.The tinshed shops were mushrooming over prime land between the BSNL building and a civil dispensary for over a decade, GMADA Estate Officer (EO) Balbir Singh Dhol said. With this, around four kanals of land, worth almost Rs 10 crore, was freed from illegal possession.
The operation, which began around 11 am, continued for over three hours as occupants themselves vacated the premises before a bulldozer pulled down the shops.
“The encroachers were asked to vacate the land voluntarily or be ready to face eviction,” said Dhol, while adding that the drive was carried out smoothly under heavy police protection by the enforcement staff. A few months ago, encroachments were removed from the same site but in the absence of any follow-up action, they had surfaced again.
Anti-encroachment drive carried out in Sector 19
The enforcement staff of the Municipal Corporation undertook a special drive on Thursday to remove encroachments on the passages in the rehri market of Sector 19. Initially, the shopkeepers resisted the drive but officials apprised them of the hazards in case of an emergency like a fire and they finally gave in. Nearly 500 encroachments were removed. Additional Commissioner P K Sharma said anti-encroachment drives will be carried out in all city markets.
