In a major action against encroachments, the municipal authorities retrieved on Monday a site on a road close to the new bus stand after a gap of 15 years by razing to ground about 25 buildings . The encroachments had narrowed the road to such an extent that it was closed for heavy vehicles and only light vehicles were allowed to enter the road.
Called ‘union office road’, it formed a vital link to the office of the Block Development Officer. Traders who have been running fruit shops, STD booths, and xerox shops have built concrete structures hindering the flow of traffic.
The municipal authorities issued notice to the encroachers about a fortnight ago and informed them about the demolition plan. The municipality had let out the area on monthly rental ranging from Rs.750 to Rs.1, 000 depending on the extent of the shops. “We did not permit them to construct any pucca concrete structure,” a municipal official told presspersons.
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In an operation that lasted for six hours, authorities demolished the pucca structures. Advance intimation by the municipality had facilitated traders to shift their goods from the site.
The bus stand is located between the union office road on the south and the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation bus depot on the north.
While 0.5 acre has now been retrieved on the northern side, efforts are being taken to take over equal measure of land from the TNSTC on the south.
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With the completion of the work on renovation of the new bus stand in the vicinity, the cumulative availability of about one acre of site in the vicinity would facilitate the municipality to provide additional amenities to passengers, say the sources.
Forty police personnel have been drafted for security duty as a precautionary measure. As part of the drive, municipal authorities also demolished another encroachment near the cooptex showroom.