498 acres of land under encroachment in Bhubaneswar, action plan launched

Bhubaneswar: Around 498 acres of govt land in the capital city has been encroached upon, with the highest of 148 acres in Jaydev Vihar, chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s written reply in the assembly revealed on Monday.“To remove encroachment, a central enforcement monitoring committee (CEMC) has been constituted,” read the reply. Jatni MLA Bibhuti Bhusan Balabantaray had asked about the extent of land encroachment in Bhubaneswar and the steps being taken to remove them. “To free encroachment, the govt is instituting cases under the Odisha Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act,” the reply revealed.Govt data showed that a total of 11,006 encroachment cases have been registered, while illegal occupation was reported at 57 locations.

Chandrasekharpur, Jagamara, Dumduma, Gadakana, BJB Nagar, Kapila Prasad, Bhimpur, Baramunda, Nilakantha Nagar and Bhoi Nagar in Nayapalli are some of the locations, apart from Jaydev Vihar, where large patches of govt land have been encroached. Vani Vihar, Bharatpur, Jokalandi, Haridaspur, Pahal, Sundarpada, Harihar Patna and Bhagabanpur have reported less than one acre of encroachment.Sources said that per acre of govt land at prime locations could be valued at more than Rs 50 crore.

The CEMC, which comprises representatives from the general administration department, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA), among others, has been carrying out eviction drives quite frequently to remove encroachments. While illegal occupation is still reported in some places even after removal, other areas are reclaimed and used for establishing boundary walls, creating govt facilities or undertaking beautification and landscaping.Officials said that, apart from residential and commercial buildings, some govt lands have been illegally captured by land sharks, who have, in turn, sold them to unsuspecting buyers. Additionally, shops, garages, resthouses, cowsheds and hotels have been established on many govt lands, which are evicted upon receiving complaints.