The High Court ordered the removal of railway slums in Delhi in August 2020, but more than two and a half years later there has been no action. In fact, 150 acres of land belonging to the national transporter continue to be usurped in the city.
According to official documents seen by News18, around 2.5 lakh people live in the city’s slums: Naraina Vihar, Azadpur, Shakur Basti, Mayapuri, Sriniwaspuri, Anand Parbat and Okhla. “According to the latest survey conducted by DUSIB (Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board) in 2014, there are 48,000 railway land shanties in Delhi covering around 150 acres. This not only affects the movement of trains, as we need to impose speed restrictions in certain parts for safety reasons; it is also a big challenge to ensure cleanliness,” a ministry official told News18 on condition of anonymity.
The official said that despite regular campaigns to clean up these areas, the same amount of trash is dumped on and around the tracks every two days. There is no way to keep these areas clean “unless the jhuggis are removed,” the official added.
In its order, the SC had directed that the railways, the Delhi government and the ministry of urban development try to resolve this. The railways said that as a policy they were not supposed to undertake rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R).
“As a policy, it must be assumed by the state government. This practice is followed all over India. State governments have to bear the cost of resettlement. If the railroads started R&R, it would be an invitation for everyone to come and settle on railroad land and then demand compensation for resettlement. If we start doing it in one place, it will be used as an example in all parts of India,” said the railway official.
What does the Delhi government say?
The Delhi government said that under the Delhi and JJ Slum Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy 2015, the rehabilitation work should be carried out by the agency owning the encroached land. “Since the railroads own the land, they have to take on the R&R. In case they want us to take on this task for them, they should pay us,” an official told News18, on condition of anonymity.
According to the official DUSIB website, it will be the central agency for the relocation and rehabilitation of JJ groups from land belonging to the MCD and the Delhi government, as well as their departments and agencies. “In the case of central government agencies such as railways, the Delhi Development Authority, the land and development office, the Delhi Cantonment Board and the New Delhi Municipal Council, they will be free to carry out the relocation and rehabilitation by themselves as per Delhi government policy or they can entrust the work to DUSIB,” the website reads.
How is the invasion affecting the railways?
In the national capital, projects worth Rs 550 crore are stalled due to encroachment on railway land. “Many of our projects are stalled due to these invasions. One of them is the grade separator (a railway flyover) at Daya Basti. Construction work for this was halted around 10-12 years ago due to land encroachment. There are around 1,700 shanties in this area, which need to be cleared for the job to be completed. It is half done and the investment in it is being wasted. This project was around Rs 200 crore,” the official said.
Another such project stuck is the construction of a coach terminal at Shakur Basti at a cost of around Rs 250 crore. There are about 750 shanties affecting the completion of this project.
The invasion has also affected an increase in the capacity of the line. The official said the railways wanted to increase the lines to ease the flow of traffic, but were unable to do so. Similar projects were also planned for the ring railway, but “everything is stuck,” the official added.
“In certain places, the invasion causes bottlenecks and safety hazards in train operations and difficulties in track maintenance. The invasion is also a nuisance to the public as well as a bottleneck for the creation of new infrastructure,” the railway official added.
According to the Ministry of Railways, 782.81 hectares (1,934.36 acres) of land is being encroached on as of March 31, 2022 across India. The northern zone has most of this, 157.89 hectares (390 acres), followed by the southeast zone with 140.60 hectares of land under invasion.
read all latest news from india here
Discover more from PressNewsAgency
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.