Noida: The district administration on Tuesday carried out a demolition drive in Bilaspur, clearing encroachments from govt land, including two village ponds, and reclaiming property worth an estimated Rs 5.5 crore.The action followed reports of unauthorised occupation of rain-fed village ponds that had dried up in recent weeks. Officials said encroachers had constructed boundary walls around the ponds and were in the process of converting the land into residential plots.A revenue official from Sadar tehsil said the encroachment was being carried out by local property dealers who routinely target govt land. “Their modus operandi is to first make boundary walls around parcels of govt land and then take money from poor and vulnerable people on the pretext of ‘selling’ this land. Many buyers are unaware that the land belongs to the govt and later end up facing losses and legal trouble,” the official said.Officials said the encroachments had come up over the past week. Locals noticed the sudden construction activity around the ponds and alerted officials of the Sadar tehsil. Acting on the complaint, revenue teams conducted a site inspection and confirmed the allegations.Officials said multiple notices were issued to the encroachers, directing them to remove the illegal structures voluntarily. When the encroachments were not cleared despite repeated warnings, the district administration decided to proceed with demolition.On Tuesday, teams from the revenue department, accompanied by police personnel, demolished the boundary walls and cleared the land. Officials said the ponds have been restored and steps will be taken to prevent future encroachment. “If the encroachers try to encroach the land again, the administration will move to register an FIR against them,” the official said.Sub-divisional magistrate (Sadar) Ashutosh Gupta said the administration is adopting a zero-tolerance approach towards illegal occupation of govt land. “The district administration is strict against encroachment on govt land, especially village ponds and other public utility land. Any such illegal structures will be immediately demolished,” he said.Gupta added that continuous monitoring is being carried out across the tehsil to identify fresh encroachments at an early stage. He also appealed to residents to verify land records before entering into any property transactions and to promptly inform authorities if they notice illegal construction on public land.Officials added that similar drives will continue in other parts of the district to protect government land and prevent illegal plotting.
