Officers to be held responsible if govt land is encroached: Haryana agri minister

While hearing a complaint pertaining to illegal encroachments, the agriculture minister said the issue was very serious and all government agencies must ensure that their land is not occupied illegally

Haryana agriculture minister Jai Parkash Dalal on Friday said that if government land is found encroached on in the city, then senior officials of the departments concerned will be held responsible for the same and action will be taken against them.

Jai Parkash Dalal made this announcement while chairing his first district grievance committee meeting in Gurugram during which he heard 13 complaints. (Vipin Kumar/HT Photo)

Dalal made this announcement while chairing his first district grievance committee meeting in Gurugram during which he heard 13 complaints. Before him, chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar chaired the grievance committee meetings but he has now shifted to Faridabad.

While hearing a complaint pertaining to illegal encroachments, the agriculture minister said the issue was very serious and all government agencies must ensure that their land is not occupied illegally. “Illegal encroachment is a very serious issue and the government agencies must prevent it. If any instance of encroachment of government land is found, then the officials of the department concerned will be held accountable and they will face action,” said Dalal.

During the meeting, he also directed officials of Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) to remove encroachments in Sector 45 and asked the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) to remove encroachments from Tigra village. Dalal also directed HSVP estate officer 2 Sanjeev Singla and MCG joint commissioner Sumit Kumar to act against encroachments and submit certificates, attesting that land has been freed from encroachments, in the next grievance committee meeting.

During the meeting, Singla said there was a stay on the land in Sector 45 but that was vacated by the court recently. He also said a number of encroachments in the adjoining areas have been removed.

After hearing grievances of transporters, Dalal said a six-member committee, including two police officers, will be formed to look into the issue of permitting goods carriers to enter the city during the period from 8am to 11am and from 4pm to 9pm daily, when there is a ban on the entry of commercial vehicles. Transporters submitted that allowing such vehicles entry during the prohibited time was disrupting their business.

In another complaint heard by the committee, residents of Islampur submitted that a bridge was required for them to reach a temple of their traditional deity nearby. Dalal directed officials to study the matter in detail and submit a report in the next grievance meeting.

According to the district administration, 13 complaints were heard by the minister on Friday of which eight were resolved and five remained pending and are likely to be heard again in the next meeting. Senior officials present in the meeting included divisional commissioner RC Bidhan, municipal commissioner Mukesh Ahuja, deputy commissioner Nishant Yadav, additional deputy commissioner Vishram Kumar Meena and commissioner of police Kala Ramchandran.