Noida: 15 more farmhouses on Yamuna banks razed, owners to pay demolition cost

NOIDA: The Noida Authority carried out yet another demolition drive in the Yamuna floodplains
on Wednesday and razed 15 unauthorised farmhouses spread over 10 acres of land — worth
around Rs 50 crore — in Asadullapur village near Sector 135. The Authority will recover the cost
of the demolition drive from the illegal farmhouse owners, officials said.
In a public notice, Noida CEO Ritu Maheshwari said that construction work cannot be carried
out in the notified area of the Authority without prior permission. No construction is permissiblein
the floodplains of Yamuna and Hindon rivers, falling in the notified area of the Authority.
“No other department or institution has the jurisdiction to approve the map or allow construction
of any kind. If any construction has been done by anyone, then remove it immediately, otherwise
it will be demolished,” the CEO said. “The recovery of the expenditure on the demolition process
will also be done from their owners like arrears of land revenue. Legal action will also be taken
against the encroachers.”
In the past three months, the Authority has demolished as many as 90 farmhouses in the
Yamuna floodplains area. Of these, 62 were demolished on June 1 alone in Tilwara and Gulavali
villages near Sector 150. They were spread over 37 acres and estimated to cost around Rs 55
crore. Most of the construction in the floodplains had taken place in the past two-three years.
The Authority has intensified its demolition drive after the District Ganga Committee headed by
district magistrate Suhas LY directed the three authorities — Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna
Expressway — to remove squatters from the floodplains a fortnight ago.
Officials said that the Authority carried out a survey along the Yamuna bank last week and
identified over 1,000 such farmhouses for demolition. Authority’s OSD Prasun Dwivedi said the
next drive would be conducted in the next three-four days. “We will continuously carry out drives
and remove all encroachments.”
Recently, TOI had highlighted the issue of rampant construction in the floodplains of Yamuna
and Hindon rivers. According to environmentalists, there are around 3,000 farmhouses in the
Yamuna floodplains of Noida alone, some of them manned by armed guards on the avenues
leading to them.
Most of the farmhouses built in the floodplains operate with solar panels for lighting. In one of
the farmhouses in Asadullapur village, a worker claimed that the owner had spent Rs 1.5 crore
on its renovation. From luxurious kitchens, and swimming pools to manicured gardens, the
farmhouses were being used for holding parties. The booking price ranges anywhere between
Rs 25,000 and Rs 30,000 for a day.
About 100 staff of the Authority, land record, and irrigation department, along with five
earthmovers, carried out Wednesday’s drive in the presence of a huge police force. The team
did not face any resistance, as most of the owners were not present during the drive that started
at 9am and went on for about three hours.
Officials said they were keeping the details of their raids under wraps till the last minute so that
they do not face any obstacles during the drive. “Most of the structures were built using aluminium and steel sheets. However, from the inside, they are equipped with air-conditioners
and other luxurious amenities,” an official said, on condition of anonymity.