Will Upper Lake encroachments finally be cleared? Task Force starts new survey

Bhopal: Even as the teams of district administration led by respective SDMs of Bhopal undertake another survey for demarcation of no-construction zone from the full tank (FTL) level of the Upper Lake and identification of encroachments in the said area, the moot question remains whether the exercise will finally be taken to its logical conclusion- removal of encroachments around the Upper Lake or would it be another survey for demarcation and identification, already done at least three times in the past on the directive of National Green Tribunal (NGT) and courts and yet the encroachments on the banks of the Upper Lake have continued to multiply over the year. The area of 50 metres from the FTL of the Lake, which is also a part of Bhoj wetland and a Ramsar site is no-construction zone under the Wetland rules and still there are hundreds of farm houses, bungalows, marriage halls, restaurants to small houses and shanties constructed in this zone. Bishsankhedi, Suraj Nagar, Khanugaon, Bairagarh and such areas are the most affected. Additional district magistrate (ADM), Bhopal, Ankur Meshram, who leads the 17-member Task Force constituted by the district collector to monitor the process of survey and demarcation and later the removal of encroachments identified in the prohibited area around the lake, when asked whether the district administration is serious on removing the encroachments this time, said "The process has already begun. If you have any particular structure in mind and only when it's demolished, you would believe that the encroachments are being removed, it's a different matter. However, let me make it clear that the Task Force will neither be involved in the survey nor would it be involved in demolition of encroachments, it has to be done by teams led by respective SDMs and they are on the job. Even as we are talking SDM, T T Nagar, is carrying out demolition somewhere in the area under her jurisdiction."When asked why a survey is necessary when it has already been dine twice in the recent past itself, he said "If any SDM says that he has a complete list of encroachments in the area and demarcation in the area is also complete, it's fine with us but where the exercise is incomplete, they have to finish it and report to the Task Force, which is meeting on Friday, Feb 27." The Task Force has members of all the concerned departments like the revenue, BMC, town & country planning (T & CP), MP Pollution Control Board, all the SDMs, police officials and two private members, who are environmental activists, he said. The Task Force was constituted following a meeting of local MP Alok Sharma earlier this week to discuss the removal of encroachments from the vicinity of the Upper Lake. Member of Parliament from Bhopal, Alok Sharma, who was the one to have taken the initiative when in his capacity as member of the standing committee of Parliament on Environment, when asked how far the exercise will go, said "I wish to save the Upper Lake. To me, it represents the pride of Bhopal. Look at the irony, Raja Bhoj in 11th century constructs this beautiful man-made huge lake and we are ruining it despite the fact that it's a source of potable water for us." However, there are sceptics in the committee itself, who believe that without being firm, it's difficult to remove the encroachments on the banks of Upper Lake. "There are two major problems in the task even if the collector Kaushlendra Vikram Singh has best of intentions. One, the group of people who present Habbenama or Inayatnama (letters of donation) from erstwhile rulers of Bhopal or present papers to show that the land they occupy belongs to Waqf Board and then you have rich and powerful, who have farmhouses and bungalows or hotels or marriage gardens on the land and administration is wary to take action on them", said Nitin Shrivastava, who is one of the private members in the committee. What he said seems to hold water as the NGT, central bench in its order on Feb 15 on the petition of Arya Shrivastava had sternly told the counsel for the Bhopal Municipal Commission (BMC) that it was not there to decide on the title or right on the land but wants the encroachments removed when she said that 35 encroachments were identified on the banks of the Upper Lake towards Bhadbhada end but only 9 could be removed due to resistance by the local people. In some cases, a case over right, title and interest of the parties is pending in the court.Meshram, however, said that encroachments will only be removed after meeting all the legal formalities including the guidelines laid down by the supreme courts, NGT or any other court for the purpose.