Land row erupts again in Noida's Shahberi village

A land row has again erupted in Shahberi, the first village in Noida Extension where the SC had quashed land acquisition. The Greater Noida authority on Tuesday demolished "illegal" structures in the village. Darpan Singh reports.

A land row has again erupted in Shahberi, the first village in Noida Extension where the SC had quashed land acquisition. The Greater Noida authority on Tuesday demolished "illegal" structures in the village.

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A clash between police and protesters left a few people injured. "The demolition is in violation of the court order. The authority is trying to punish Shahberi," said Dushyant Nagar, a farmer.

But the authority thinks otherwise. The deputy chief executive officer, PC Gupta, said, "A larger notification, issued in 1991, for planned development of the region, is in force. This says for any construction, the land-owner needs a no-objection certificate from the authority."

The quashing of acquisition in Shahberi stopped real estate developers' project of 6,500 flats. The village today is a mess with dusty roads and concrete pillars of unfinished apartments greeting visitors.

The authority said private colonisers were buying "notified" land from farmers and selling plots to unsuspecting buyers. The authority claimed to have freed 150 bighas of such land worth crores of rupees from the "occupants".