Ghaziabad civic body demolishes 11 illegal buildings in Shanti Nagar

GHAZIABAD: A high-voltage drama was witnessed in Shanti Nagar on Saturday as residents refused to vacate their houses when Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) officials went to the area to demolish 11 illegal structures. Police had a tough time evicting the occupants from the houses and had to literally drag them out.

GMC commissioner Mahendra Singh Tawar said they had no option but to clear 1.3 hectares of encroachments, which were part of a 3.7-hectare GMC land where the UP government plans to set up a political institute. “However, if any evicted resident needs an accommodation, we can allot them flats in our Kanshiram Yojna but they need to apply.”

However, heart-rending scenes were witnessed as women with children in their laps were forced out of their houses. “We have been living here for years and in one stroke, they brought our house down, this is injustice” said a woman.

Rachna, another woman resident, said, “Where were officials when touts were selling the plots to us, with all the resources at their disposal, why didn’t they stop the sale of plots then. It was because they were all hand in glove with the touts, and now they have come with machines and police force as if we are criminals.”

A man locked himself in and climbed the terrace to save his house, but the cops broke open the doors and forcibly brought him down before razing the structure.

A GMC official, who was overseeing the drive, said all the occupants of the illegal structures were informed in advance about the eviction drive. “We held many meetings with the locals and tried to convince them to vacate the land. In fact, last month our team had met with stiff resistance from them when we went there for a similar demolition drive and had to abandon it half-way,” said Tawar.