2,200 acres freed from encroachers to be used for housing poor: MP govt

The Madhya Pradesh government on Saturday claimed that 2,244 acres of government land was freed from the clutches of land mafia, encroachers and anti-social elements in the last three months, and it would be used to provide housing for the poor.

The information was given in a conference of district collectors, divisional commissioners and senior police officials, addressed by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, an official release said. Land mafia, goons and anti-social elements will not be tolerated in the state. Such actions should continue against them and they should be destroyed financially besides taking strict legal action, the chief minister was quoted as saying.

From January to March this year, 1,791 cases were registered against anti-social elements who had encroached on government land and 2,244 acres of land worth Rs 671 crore was freed by demolishing 3,814 illegal structures, the release said. Fear of the mafia has to be eliminated from the people's minds and ordinary citizens' morale must be increased, Chouhan further said. It was also informed at the meeting that in the last three months, 11,547 investors recovered a total of Rs 33.73 crore stuck with chit-fund companies.