DDA issues fresh eviction notices in Kashmere Gate’s Yamuna Bazar
The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) issued fresh eviction notices to residents of Yamuna Bazar in Kashmere Gate area, officials said on Wednesday.
The notice has been given to residents of the Ghats between 2 to 32 in the area to vacate the area voluntarily, failing which, a demolition drive will be undertaken to clear the “encroachment”, the notice said.
“The residents of Yamuna Bazaar Ghat No 2 to 32 are informed that as per the directions given by the National Green Tribunal to the Delhi Development Authority the floodplain area of River Yamuna falling under the jurisdiction of DDA is to be freed from all types of encroachments,” the notice dated June 23 said.
According to an earlier order of the Delhi High Court the affected families can avail the temporary shelter (night shelter) of Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB).
The notice further lists out night shelters in nearby areas where the ones displaced can take shelter.
“If homes of the poor are demolished in the name of development, families and children are forced to live on the streets, and children fall victim to exploitation, violence, or sexual crimes due to homelessness, would this be called development?,” Sunil Aledia, member of Centre for Holistic Development (CHD), a social organisation working in the field said.
Last month also DDA and Delhi Disaster Management Authority, both had pasted similar eviction notices in the area.
The authorities have identified this area as ‘O-Zone’ along the Yamuna, which is designated as a protected, no-construction floodplain which is under the management of DDA.
There was no immediate response from DDA on the matter.
The action comes after Delhi Lt Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu chaired a detailed review with DDA officials on the progress of rejuvenation works in Yamuna Bazar area, following a visit to the area along with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta last month.
The low-lying area of Yamuna Bazar along the Ring Road is prone to waterlogging during the monsoon, with floodwater inundating the main road, and hampering traffic movement.
