NMC razes Raj Nagar slum, frees fire college land of encroachment

Nagpur: The Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), along with city police teams, resumed its anti-encroachment drive in Raj Nagar on Thursday morning. Nearly 70 shanties were razed, leaving dozens of families homeless for the second time this month. The operation targeted slums on land belonging to the National Fire Service College (NFSC).
Earlier, the anti-encroachment drive was paused after an alleged intervention by a political heavyweight. Sources revealed that the April 16 drive was stopped midway after a call reportedly came from a senior leader, resulting in a temporary reprieve for the families. However, with no official rehabilitation plan in place, the respite proved short-lived.
On Thursday, the anti-encroachment operation resumed in full force. As earthmovers rolled in and the NMC's anti-encroachment team, flanked by police personnel, razed the remaining structures, officials from the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) began barricading the cleared land with barbed wire to prevent further encroachment. The drive was carried out under the guidance of NMC's enforcement superintendent Sanjay Kamble and Mangalwari zone officerAbhijeetBhure.
The drive targeted unauthorised homes near the road connecting Police Line Lake T-point to Nelson Square. The land was officially allotted to the NFSC. By evening, the entire slum cluster stood dismantled, and families could be seen scattering to nearby footpaths and open areas.
When Team TOI visited the site post-demolition, the scale of displacement was stark. Children clutched ragged bags, mothers tried to shield infants from the heat, and families sat amidst piles of salvaged belongings spread over footpaths across both sides of the road.
"If you don't have a house in the city, you have no rights to live here," said Nirmalabai Jagni, an elderly resident, her voice heavy with despair. A man named Hari Prasad added, "They've thrown us out again. What are we going to do now? There's no plan, no help, we're just sitting here on the road."
Despite repeated evictions, civic authorities have not announced any resettlement or compensation plan for the displaced. Officials maintain that the structures were illegal, and the action, carried out for protecting govt land, was in line with the law. However, the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Raj Nagar raises critical questions about the city's preparedness to deal with housing for the urban poor.