Indian Express 02.12.2010
CHB officials visit demolition site; residents air grievances
Express News Service Tags : Chandigarh Housing Board, demolition drive Posted: Thu Dec 02 2010, 02:10 hrs
The CHB had removed violations and encroachments from 34 houses on Tuesday. Madhu Bansal, wife of Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Pawan Kumar Bansal, as well as Municipal Corporation councillors were also present. The residents took the team to the houses where the demolition had taken place. During the drive, the garages and balconies had been brought down.
The residents stated that these were need-based changes made in the houses and had been present for more than a decade. They further said that they should have been given more time to get the changes regularised instead of the houses being demolished.
Rajinder Singh, a member of the Sector 45 Residents’ Welfare Federation, said that the demolition was carried out due to the personal vendetta of a CHB official. “We have demanded that the official, who has himself made numerous violations in his house in the area, be repatriated to Haryana. The Federation has further said that no demolition should take place till we are given time for getting the changes regularised. The damages should be paid for by the CHB,” he said.
The CHB officials reportedly asked them to give their demands in writing. Councillor Pardeep Chhabra, who was present during the inspection, said that the residents had constructed structures on their own land and they could not be considered encroachments. The CHB needs to reconsider its decision and allow need-based changes, he argued.
