In an early morning demolition drive carried out with tight police security recently, as many as 19 residential and commercial structures were razed to the ground to clear the encroachment on government land at the Shor Gumbaz area in Kalaburagi. The operation began at around 4 a.m. and earth-movers finished the task within a few hours.
As per the information provided by the administration, notices were often issued to those who had illegally encroached the government land and built residential and commercial structures asking them to vacate the land. The final notice was given on Saturday asking the people to vacate the place and facilitate the encroachment clearance.
While many people had vacated their premises the previous night, others did it the following day as bulldozers approached the locality. Some were found carrying their belongings and moving out of the area in grief.
A resident of the area said that Anand Rathod had cheated people by selling plots developed on the illegally encroached upon government land. People purchased the plots believing that he was the owner of the plots, he added.
