New Delhi: Authorities on Sunday began demolishing 143 illegal structures in Delhi’s Shalimar Bagh area after the Supreme Court upheld orders permitting the clearance of encroachments from land earmarked for the road widening, officials said.
The demolition drive was launched in Haiderpur village, where the structures were found within the designated 30-metre right of way of the proposed corridor — Road No. 320 — linking the Shalimar Bagh Railway Under Bridge with the Outer Ring Road.
According to district authorities, the action follows the Supreme Court’s dismissal of a Special Leave Petition challenging the project. The apex court’s order upheld an earlier Delhi High Court ruling that had rejected pleas seeking to halt the demolition and declare the decades-old land acquisition proceedings invalid.
Senior officers, including the Deputy Commissioner of Police and Assitant Commissioner of Police, were present at the site to oversee security and maintain law and order during the exercise.
Police said action was being taken against around 150 structures as part of a road-widening project. The entire area was turned into a high-security zone as the operation got underway.
