The District Congress Committee (DCC), Sundargarh has warned the authorities not to undertake any eviction drive here without rehabilitating slum people.
Eviction notices have been issued to people for construction of 3rd Howrah-Mumbai railway line from Rourkela to Jharsuguda without any rehabilitation package, alleged DCC president Biren Senapati.
He slammed the railway authorities for not constructing on the left-side of the existing line where the railways have lands but encroached by hoteliers, petrol pump and car showroom owners. By the decision of laying the third track on the right side, more than 1,000 slum dwellers would be evicted, he lamented.
Senapati also questioned that while one line is to be set up for which hardly fifty feet wide space is required, but under what intention the evection notice was given for 85 feet wide space which is unethical.
“Unless the slum dwellers are provided houses under the Prime Minister Awas Yojana, further eviction process should be kept in abeyance,” deanded Senapati.
It may be noted here the railway authorities on Friday served notices to slum dwellers of Kumbharpara and Durgapur slums asking them to evict the lands within seven days.
Senapati along with Congress leaders like former MlA Pravat Mohapatra, PCC Member Ramananda Srichandan, block president Binod Bihari Pattanaik, OBC cell president Kailash Sahoo, political secretary Kirtan Das, Hara Prasad Samal, Rabindra Das, Pradyumna Sarangi, Akhaya Nayak, Student Congress leader Sibu Das and Mantu Bhatta visited the slums on Saturday and assured to protect slum dwellers’ interest.