Illegal mazar on FCI land in Haldwani demolished

By Arun Pratap Singh
my uttarakhand news Bureau 

HALDWANI (Nainital), 7 Nov: The Haldwani administration on Saturday demolished an alleged illegal mazar constructed within the premises of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) godown at Rajpura, as part of the State government’s ongoing drive against encroachments on government land.
The action was carried out early in the morning by a team led by City Magistrate AP Bajpai and Municipal Commissioner Paritosh Verma. Officials supervised the removal of the structure, which had been built inside the FCI compound and was being treated by the administration as an unauthorised construction on government property.
According to officials, a notice had been served around two weeks ago directing the removal of the structure through due legal process. As no action was taken following the notice period, the administration proceeded with the demolition drive this morning.
Authorities stated that the mazar had allegedly been constructed some time ago by some Muslim labourers who had come from other states to work in the area. Officials further maintained that the presence of the structure was affecting the storage capacity and functioning of the government food grain warehouse.
With this action, the State government claims that the number of illegal mazars removed from government land across Uttarakhand has reached 604. The demolition forms part of an ongoing campaign by the Dhami government to clear alleged encroachments from public land and remove unauthorised religious structures identified by the administration.
The development comes a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during his Dehradun visit on Friday, expressed support for the State government’s action against illegal mazars and madrasas. It may be recalled here that Shah had said the government had taken firm steps against illegal structures and worked towards preserving the cultural character of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has repeatedly asserted that government land would not be allowed to be occupied illegally and that activities based on unauthorised occupation of public property would not be permitted to flourish. The state government has maintained that its campaign is aimed at reclaiming government land and ensuring that public property remains free from illegal encroachments.
Officials have claimed that the anti-encroachment drive would continue in accordance with legal procedures wherever unauthorised occupation of government land is identified.