MOHALI: Finally taking notice of blatant religious encroachments present in Mohali city, Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) has been asked to look for alternative sites to shift two such religious structures. These would be part of the first phase of removal or shifting of such encroachments.

The meeting in this regard on Monday was chaired by Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal. It was decided that 14 religious encroachments, which were located on prime residential or commercial land, would be allotted new sites and that some of them would be allowed to operate in the land already with them and the rest of the land would be handed back to GMADA for development.

One of the discussed religious structures, a gurudwara in Sector 69, is an encroachment on a public park of 14 acres. Out of the total area, four acres is the area in which the gurudwara is built. As such the rest of the land would be handed over to GMADA.

GMADA estate officer Balbir Singh Dhol said that the process of identifying sites for shifting the religious structures would be commenced shortly but since the structures have existed in the area for a long while, the planning of Mohali city was done around them. He said, "We are in the process of speaking to the management of the religious structures which are in violation and have encroached upon public land. Managements have been told that although their structures would be regularized, they would be required to hand over land to GMADA which they do not require." He said another religious structure, a temple in Sector 66, would now be allotted a fresh site between sectors 66 and 70 and work on that front would commence soon.