E-Paper
GMADA razes 40-year-old illegal market in Mohali’s Phase 1, frees 4 acres
Officials said around 50 illegal temporary shops had come up at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Market in Mohali over four decades back
The Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) on Monday carried out a demolition drive at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Market in Phase 1 and reclaimed around four acres of government land.
Officials said around 50 illegal temporary shops had come up at the market over four decades back.
A GMADA team, along with police force, reached the area around 11 am and began the demolition drive an hour later after allowing the encroachers to remove their belongings. The drive continued till 3.30 pm, amid sloganeering by protesting shopkeepers.
“The encroachers were given three days to remove their belongings. On Monday, a GMADA team, led by around 10 officials, razed the illegal shops with police support,” said Mankanwal Singh Chahal, estate officer, GMADA.
He added that GMADA had served eviction notices on the shopkeepers in 2003 as well, following which they had approached the court. “Their petition was dismissed in 2020. But following the Covid-19 outbreak, the court in its blanket orders restrained evictions till March 2022 by any authority,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticised the AAP-led Punjab government for “snatching the shopkeepers’ livelihood”.
BJP state executive member Sanjeev Vashisht said, “Before demolishing the market in Phase 1, the government should have provided alternative space to the shopkeepers. People here have been earning their living by running businesses for the last 40 years. It is absolutely inappropriate to remove them like this.”
