This story is from April 12, 2018

Squatters to be removed from Mehrauli park

The encroachments in and around the Mehrauli Archaeological Park are set to be vacated. On Thursday, demolition teams are likely to remove the nurseries, tin shacks and huts that are crowding the space around ASI-protected monuments there. The action is being taken in keeping with the directions of the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee overseeing the removal of all unauthorised occupation of government land. The authorities see the role of “land grabbers” behind most of these encroachments.
Squatters to be removed from Mehrauli park
NEW DELHI: The encroachments in and around the Mehrauli Archaeological Park are set to be vacated. On Thursday, demolition teams are likely to remove the nurseries, tin shacks and huts that are crowding the space around ASI-protected monuments there. The action is being taken in keeping with the directions of the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee overseeing the removal of all unauthorised occupation of government land.
The authorities see the role of “land grabbers” behind most of these encroachments.
The south-west district authorities made announcements through mobile public address systems on Tuesday and Wednesday, informing people about the scheduled demolition and asking people to remove their belongings. During a visit to the area on Wednesday, TOI found people poring over the notices issued by the sub-divisional magistrate, and exhibiting earlier orders and documents to drive home the point that they were being targeted for no fault of theirs.
Some others had started vacating the area. One spot with mounds of debris seemed to indicate a demolition had taken place. However, it was learnt that the demolition had been executed by the occupant of the site. In the jhuggis that are likely to be razed, children and women were seen gathering their belongings amid an atmosphere of despair, anger and anxiety.
Many of the nurseries dotting the roads leading to the Mehrauli Archaeological Part and Qutab Minar have been discovered to be encroaching on government land, and the demolition squads are likely to clear many of these spaces. Officials claimed that the land mafia had been encouraging encroachment by setting up jhuggis and then giving out the shacks on rent. The spread of some nurseries in the vicinity too is being linked to the involvement of illegal land dealers.
On March 15, the monitoring committee members carried out an inspection in and around the archaeological park in the company of officials from DDA and South Delhi Municipal Corporation. On March 22, the committee issued directions to the district task force (south) to initiate legal action to free up all occupied government land around the park. The panel noted with concern that “encroachment and unauthorised construction is growing day by day” in the area.

Another inspection, joined by officials of the revenue department, Archaeological Survey of India and Delhi Waqf Board, followed and confirmed the encroachments in the area. Sources said the report by this team not only established the encroachment by comparing the revenue records with the ground situation, but also registered concern over “land grabbers running illegal nurseries and unauthorised jhuggis”.
Officials pointed that the encroachments violated DDA's zonal development plan and ASI's norms for acquiring construction permission. District officials said notices were issued to illegal occupants first on March 23 and then again on April 4. The officials justified the demolition action planned for Thursday on grounds of non-compliance of the notice asking the encroachers to vacate the government land.
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