The Delhi High Court has ordered the demolition of the Madrasi camp from June 1, expressing the need for cleaning the Barapula drain to prevent severe waterlogging in the monsoon.
Apart from the action of removing encroachment, the High Court has also ordered the displaced people to settle in Narela. A bench of Justice Pratibha M Singh and Justice Manmeet PS Arora said on May 9, “The action of removing encroachments should be done in a systematic manner. Rehabilitation of residents of Madrasi camp is also necessary to free Barapula drain from jam. No resident can claim any other right other than the right to rehabilitation, as it is a public land, which has been encroached. ”
Instructions for smooth rehabilitation of residents of Madrasi camp from May 20 were also given. The authorities had issued a demolition notice to the families living illegally to free the Barapula drain from the jam and remove the unauthorized construction.
The court said that rehabilitation is extremely important in view of the nearby monsoon season, as well as timely cleaning of Barapula drain is necessary to prevent severe waterlogging in the surrounding areas.
Officers of various departments including Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Delhi Municipal Corporation (MCD), Public Works Department (PWD) and Government of Delhi were ordered to organize two camps from May 19 to 20.
The bench said that between May 20 and May 31, all goods should be removed from the Madrasi camp and sabotage should start from June 1. The court settled the application of several residents of the Madrasi camp to stop the anti-encroachment campaign and said that the matter has been under his notice for more than 10 months.
The issue was about illegal encroachment on the drains, due to which the drains were getting blocked and the river was getting polluted. Describing the Madrasi camp as illegal construction, the court said that this caused the drain to be obstructed and the drain was blocked, which caused severe waterlogging in the surrounding areas, especially during the rains, especially during the monsoon season.