Palghar: The Palghar collector, Govind Bodke has stated that all encroachments other than the landowner's own house will be demolished from gairan (grazing) land at various places across the district. All commercial and industrial establishments will be razed. The collector was speaking to a delegation comprising representatives of various political parties, village sarpanches and land owners who met him to stop the demolitions after the district administration started removing encroachments on grazing land in the last week of December.
Mr Bodke said action was being taken as per high court orders. He clarified that if the landowners have a house and live there, they won't face immediate action. However, action will be taken against grazing lands being used for agricultural, commercial or industrial purposes. Mr Bodke asserted that he would personally visit places of encroachment to verify demolitions have been carried out properly.
Notably, a large number of defaulters are current or ex-representatives of the local self-government, including retired revenue officers. They had been issued notices several times and objections were also registered during their election process. However, no one pursued the matter of their disqualification after they were elected.
