Neral encroachments cleared on Kalyan-Karjat road after fast, but selective action draws questions
Locals allege discrimination in the removal drive on the Kalyan-Karjat state highway in Neral and ask whether the PWD will clear all encroachments.
Encroachments have been removed from the Kalyan-Karjat state highway passing through the Neral gram panchayat limits in Karjat taluka, following a fast. Locals allege, however, that the action did not follow the fasting protesters' demand evenly and was selective. The question now is whether the Public Works Department (PWD) will remove all encroachments along the road.
The protesters had demanded that encroachments on the road space on the Karjat-Kalyan road, from the Neral Vidya Mandir school to the Neral petrol pump, be removed. On this demand, the PWD took action on October 1 and 2. The action stopped on the third day, today. Encroachments from the Neral octroi naka to the Neral petrol pump remain as they were.
In Neral, the drain along the roadside was initially treated as the boundary. A distance of 12 metres from the centre of the road was then fixed. This led to disputes in many places. The action was carried out with all this in mind and continued late into the night.
Sanjivani Hazare, a former member of the Neral gram panchayat and owner of the Ekvira eatery here, has expressed anger over the action. She says the Neral police station and the boundary of the school beyond it have been left untouched. Beyond the octroi naka, some encroachments were not demolished, with the forest department cited as the reason. There are also encroachments along the road near the LES school. She asked when the 12-metre rule would be applied to these. She warned that these encroachments must be removed immediately, or she too will have to go on a fast.
Dhanaji Garud said the structure on his property is being described as being on road space, though it lies outside the 12 metres. He will therefore go to court against the PWD and seek compensation.
In the action, the wall of the Neral police station abutting the road was not demolished. The boundary wall of a school on the roadside also stands as it was. Locals say this is a serious matter. They say that structure too should be demolished and that there should be one standard of justice for all. They have warned of a fast for this reason.
The shed in front of a temple was removed. The Gajanan Maharaj temple in the area was outside the 12 metres, but the shed was encroaching on road space, so the temple management removed it themselves.
In the Neral market area, the government has spent crores of rupees on roadside footpaths, which hawkers have occupied. Many Neral residents have announced that they will sit on a fast if no action is taken against them.
