Chandigarh: Pursuing the goal of a slum-free city, the Chandigarh administration reclaimed 6 acres of land by demolishing Sanjay Colony in Industrial Area Phase-1 here on Wednesday. The estimated price of the reclaimed land is around Rs 250 crore.
Amidst heavy police presence, the drive started early in the morning with bulldozers put into action to demolish more than 1,200 hutments. Around 6,000 people were residing in the colony, which was around two decades old.
In contrast to Tuesday, when some residents blocked the road near the colony in protest against the drive, the drive went off peacefully with muted opposition from the residents on Wednesday. There was an attempt by some residents to stage a protest against the drive, but the police immediately acted to stop it.
"The drive started around 6 am. As nearly half of the population left the site by Tuesday night, most of the demolition work was done by afternoon. They took their belongings on Tuesday and left only their hutments standing. These were then demolished this morning," said a UT official.
The hutments were turned into rubble, and the cleaning up of the site also started immediately. The drive was completed by around 5 pm. The possession of the reclaimed land was handed over to the UT engineering department, which started the fencing of the area.
Around 1,000 police personnel, paramedics, civil defence teams, and senior officials, including the Deputy Commissioner, were present during the drive. In the gap of three years, this is the second major drive carried out by the administration in its bid to make the city slum-free.
The last major slum demolition drive was undertaken in May 2022 when the city's largest slum cluster at the time, Colony Number 4, was demolished. The colony was also located in Industrial Area Phase-1. In the process, the administration vacated around 65 acres of govt land, estimated to be worth Rs 2,000 crore.
Colony Number 4 housed around 10,000 people, who set up over 2,500 shanties over the past 50 years. Three thousand families were rehabilitated. Thereafter, only two major slum clusters were left in the city – Sanjay Colony and Janta Colony.
Box: Reclaiming All Encroached Lands
After the demolition drive against Sanjay Colony, the administration plans to demolish Janta Colony in Sector 25 within the next 15 days. "There are around 2,000 hutments in Janta Colony. Residents were given time to present their case against the demolition of hutments. After following due process, these will now be demolished as the govt land has been encroached illegally," said a UT official. The administration also plans to reclaim the illegally occupied lands from the furniture and marble markets. "There might be some delay in the removal of these illegal markets as the launch of the bulk market has been delayed. It requires environmental clearance, and for it, the administration initiated the process. But the administration expects these to be vacated in a couple of months," said the official.
Hundreds left homeless amid calls for more rehabilitation time
Munieshwer.Sagar@timesofindia.com
Chandigarh: In just a few hours, the homes built over decades were reduced to rubble, and hundreds were left homeless as the Chandigarh Administration demolished the hutments of the poorest residents of the city in its quest to make the city slum-free. All that was left were tears, despondency, and an uncertain future. People could be seen trying to salvage their belongings from the rubble. Many were teary-eyed, worried about their children stranded on the roads, staring at their demolished homes.
Radhe Shyam, 56, currently unemployed, said, "This is the second time the govt has left us homeless. Earlier, we were living near the railway station. Our hutments were demolished there, and we moved to Sanjay Colony. After living here for nearly two decades, the govt has now demolished our home here also. I fell a couple of months ago and lost my job also. I have a small daughter and no money. All I had was this hut. Now where will I go?"
Residents claimed the administration gave them little time to shift. "All we wanted was some time for shifting. We were told four days ago that the colony would be demolished. It was too little time for us to find a new house, pack our stuff, and go there. I am a daily wager. I have three children. My wife works as a maid. Every day we have to struggle to just earn enough to survive," said Vijay Shankar, 40.
The colony houses migrants from different parts of the country. There was also a sizeable number of migrants from Tamil Nadu. "My grandfather migrated to the city nearly 50 years ago. My father, me, and all of our siblings were born in the city. We were living here for the last 20 years. We also had the requisite documents making us eligible for a rehabilitation colony house. But too little time was given to submit all the papers by the administration. Only a couple of years' voter list was to be submitted, but there was not enough time," said Vellu, 26, a daily wager living in a joint family in the now-demolished colony.
UT's contention
This area was surveyed in the year 2006 for rehabilitation under the Chandigarh Small Flat Scheme. At that time, 242 dwelling units were found, which were taken up for rehabilitation upon fulfilment of other conditions of the scheme. "However, over the years, many other illegal occupants have encroached over this govt land," said a UT spokesperson.
Wednesday's action came after nearly three years of sustained legal proceedings and multiple interventions by the High Court as well as the Supreme Court of India. The initial plan for demolition was proposed in mid-2022; however, the process was stayed by the High Court. Following a final decision in November 2024, the path was cleared for the execution of Wednesday's operation.
"In adherence to principles of natural justice, the residents were provided due opportunity for a hearing. A special verification camp was also organised on the previous day to assess the eligibility of occupants under the applicable rehabilitation policy," said the spokesperson.
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