Bargarh: An eviction drive has been launched in the district headquarters town of Bargarh in Odisha to clear encroachments from government land to pave the way for a road expansion work. Encroachments need to be cleared for expansion of the road from Lengu Mishra Chowk to Jira Bridge in Bargarh town.
A total of 58 plots encroaching upon government land were identified during a survey conducted on Friday and Saturday and the owners were asked to vacate space by Monday, sources said.
The stretch of road between Lengu Mishra Chowk and Jira Bridge remains congested most of the time as several business establishments operate in the area apart from encroachments by the land owners. Many residents besides citizen forums and bar associations have raised the demand for the eviction of illegal structures on many occasions.
“The eviction drive has been taken up as there was a long-standing demand from citizen groups about congestion of the road. A committee was formed comprising government officers as well as citizen representatives. The committee decided to take swift and unbiased action on the matter,” Bargarh district Collector Monisha Banerjee was quoted by TNIE as saying.
The committee, after their third meeting on Thursday, proposed to the collector for an immediate eviction and demolition drive and got a nod on Friday. Subsequently, on Friday a survey was conducted by the RI in the presence of the officials and police forces and the government land was demarcated.
The structures on encroached land were marked in red colour. While as many as 58 plots were identified on which houses, godowns and shops have been built illegally, the Bargarh Municipality served notice to the owners directing them to vacate the encroached area within the next 48 hours failing which the structures on the encroached area will be demolished and stringent action taken against them.
