Anti-encroachment drive not to be taken to colonies, says minister

Giving a major relief to people from the ongoing anti-encroachment drive in Uttarakhand, the state government Wednesday announced it will not extend the drive to the colonies and their internal roads.

Speaking in reply to a proposal brought by Congress members in the state Assembly in this regard, state Urban Development Minister Madan Kaushik said, "We have removed encroachments from government land along main thoroughfares only. We have decided not to take the drive to colonies and their internal roads and alleys.

The drive is being conducted in compliance with an Uttarakhand High Court order which is even otherwise necessary to decongest the city streets and reduce the traffic pressure on them besides unclogging the drains that lead to waterlogging, Kaushik said.

He also spoke of the state government's plan to make Dehradun a smart city.

The minister said the state government was sensitive to the problems of people and the ordinance it brought to save the residents of slum colonies from the demolitions being carried out as part of the anti-encroachment drive is a proof of this.

The ordinance will soon become an act, he said.

Earlier, raising the issue through an adjournment motion, Leader of Opposition Indira Hridayesh said people's house and shops are being demolished in the name of an anti-encroachment drive.

"No one is being spared. Refugees living in the town for more than 50 years are losing their shops and shelters," she said.

There have been massive demolitions in Dehradun as well as Nainital and Haridwar, she said.

"Bhotiya and Chat bazars of Nainital have also been demolished despite the fact that they were causing no obstructions," she said.

She had appealed to the state government to be sensitive to the affected people and look for a solution like their relocation.