Noida authority staffer injured in a protest against anti-encroachment drive

The authority officials filed a complaint against two street vendors, who reportedly led an agitation against the authority’s team that was removing the encroachments. The authority officials said removing the street stalls had become a huge challenge because the vendors had aggressively started resisting the drive.

Following protests by a few street vendors, a contractual worker, hired by the Noida authority, was injured during an anti-encroachment drive in Sector 15 on Monday.

The Noida authority demolished a banquet hall allegedly built on government land in Gejha in Sector 93 on Monday. (HT Photo)

“A team of seven members was removing the street stalls from Sector 15 near Gulmohar market around 4pm on Monday. When we started putting the stalls into our trolley, over 20 street vendors attacked us with stones. A stone hit our worker, Shiv Kumar, on his face leaving him severely injured,” a Noida authority official, on condition of anonymity, said.

The authority officials filed a complaint against two street vendors, who reportedly led an agitation against the authority’s team that was removing the encroachments. The authority officials said removing the street stalls had become a huge challenge because the vendors had aggressively started resisting the drive.

“Around 20 vendors, whose stalls we were removing, started shouting slogans against us. Someone from the mob then started throwing stones at the team and we had to run to save ourselves. But in the meantime, a stone injured one of our team members,” an official, who led the team, said.

Police have filed an FIR in the matter and started an investigation.

“We have filed an FIR against street vendors and arrested two persons to further look into the matter. We will take further action after the probe is complete,” Rajveer Singh Chauhan, station house officer, Sector 20 police station, said.

On Monday, the authority also removed a banquet hall to free the government land in Gejha village in Sector 93 and conducted an anti-encroachment drive in Phase 2.

Street vendors at the Hosiery Complex area in Phase 2 also resisted the anti-encroachment drive and reportedly pelted stones at the authority staff. No one was injured in the agitation.

The authority has recently started a drive to free all public spaces including footpaths, roadsides and other spaces from encroachments.

The Noida authority chief executive officer, Ritu Maheshwari, has directed the authority staff to act against all kinds of encroachments and act tough against those, who have encroached upon government land indulged in illegal construction on the same.

“We have issued notices to all banquet halls built in violation of laid down norms on authority’s land. We have removed one banquet hall and action against others will start shortly,” KK Aggarwal, general manager of the authority, said.