Ujjain: Housing board department had attached 4 hectare of land near Government Engineering College in the year 2007 for its ‘Goyalakhurd Awas Yojana’ but on the same land, as many as farmers were carrying rose plant cultivation from many years. On Tuesday morning after receiving court’s order; Housing Board officials, with heavy police force, reached the spot to take possession of the illegally encroached land by farmers amid farmers’ harsh confrontation.
Department acts following court’s order
According to reports, the officials had reached to take possession after the court’s decision. The cops drove away the protesting farmers from the site and later officials ordered their team to flatten the land. 4 JCB machines, riot control vehicles, fire brigades and additional 100 cops were deployed with CSP, DSP and other police officials during the action standing crops of rose was destroyed.
Minister’s intervention halts work
When agitated farmers learnt that Urban Development Minister Jaivardhan Singh’s cavalcade is coming they blocked the road and gheraoed the minister. They informed the minister that they had not received the compensation so far. After talking to farmers, Singh instructed the ADM to stop the action. The department halted their work after minister’s intervention.
Farmers allege granting of less compensation
Farmer Purushottm Patel and Satyanarayan Patel said that the occupied land is owned by their family. Housing Board earlier had sanctioned the compensation of Rs 99 lakhs which is much lesser as compared to market value of the land. At present the land’s cost is Rs 40 crores, therefore they did not accept the compensation proceeds by now, farmers added.
