The Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) has formed a team of officers to monitor and take action against encroachments in areas under its jurisdiction, particularly on all right-of-way (ROW) roads and green belts.

This was done at the instruction of GMDA CEO V Umashankar, after he reviewed action by the enforcement office against illegal constructions from July 2018 to March 2019.

An engineer in the GMDA’s infra division said, “The CEO believed that removal of encroachments needs to be done in a more forceful manner. Hence this committee has been formed. It will monitor, report encroachments, and seek help from the Gurugram police to remove illegal structures.”

The committee will be headed by the department of town and country planning (DTCP), enforcement, and comprise three officials from GMDA’s urban environment division, mobility division and infra division respectively. It will be the responsibility of these divisions to ensure illegal constructions, once razed, are not erected again. The removal of structures will begin “after the election period”, the minutes noted.

Meanwhile, sector-wise lists of encroachments are being prepared by the infra division on all roads between Sectors 1 and 57, while the urban environment division is doing the same for all green belts in these sectors.

In the newer sectors, 58 to 115, where green belt areas have not been developed, this task has been assigned to DTCP (enforcement), which may seek help from HSVP. The GMDA’s urban planning division will call a meeting of licensees who have recently developed or are developing properties to discuss the possibility of maintaining green belts.

The chief town planner, Gurugram, last month told GMDA CEO that the enforcement office was understaffed, with just one assistant town planner and two junior engineers. “A request to depute more officers has been sent to DTCP in Panchkula,” the GMDA official said.

First Published: May 12, 2019 00:04 IST