Ludhiana: MC removes shanties from govt land, dwellers protest
According to Ludhiana MC officials, the shanties had been removed earlier as well, but the encroachers kept returning and rebuilding the structures on the same land; officials also said the land is earmarked for the development of a public park
Ludhiana: A team from the municipal corporation’s tehbazari wing demolished illegal shanties set up on government land in Manna Singh Nagar, near Chand Cinema, on Monday. The drive faced strong opposition from slum dwellers living at the site, who protested the removal. There was a chaotic scene at the site when the MC team, along with a JCB machine, started removing the makeshift houses.
As the MC team, accompanied by police, started the demolition, some of the encroachers allegedly tried to throw bricks at the officials. However, with police presence, the situation was brought under control and no clash took place.
According to MC officials, the shanties had been removed earlier as well, but the encroachers kept returning and rebuilding the structures on the same land. Officials said the land is earmarked for the development of a public park.
Meanwhile, slum dwellers expressed anger and helplessness, questioning where they would go now along with their children. They alleged that during the demolition drive, the MC team also damaged their household goods and the little stock of groceries they had. The slum residents claimed they had been living there for decades and even had voter ID cards with addresses from the same area.
The residents said political leaders often visit them at the time of elections seeking their votes, but no one came to their support when their homes were being razed. One of the residents, who earns a living by collecting dry waste from garbage, said they owned very few belongings, and even those were destroyed in the demolition. “We have no other place to go. Where will we live now?” he asked.
On the other hand, MC officials maintained that the land belongs to the government, and a park is to be developed there. They added that this was not the first time the shanties had been removed, but the encroachers keep returning and setting them up again.
