GBA razes down 400 houses in Yelahanka, minority families including Muslims worst affected
Bengaluru: In an incident reported from the state capital, more than 3,000 people living in Fakir Colony of the Kogilu Layout near Yelahanka were rendered homeless by the officials of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) on Saturday.
The officials, who said the 400 houses were constructed on encroached land, held the operation using nine tractors and nine earthmovers, razing down the houses.
They have ousted around 90 per cent of the families who had been living in the area for more than 30 years and belong to minority communities, including Muslims from the colony.
The bereaved residents have insisted that the government had provided them land in the locality to build houses and reside. “We have all official documents as well as Aadhaar cards and voter IDs as proofs. Our source of livelihood is only manual labour,” they added.
“Many of the families had mortgaged the houses to get loans from banks, but the GBA officials have razed our houses without giving any prior notice,” they said and added, “Some of the women here are pregnant, but the officers showed no concern for such people too.”
Referring to the title deeds, the residents said that the local representatives had assured them that they would be handed the documents. “So far, however, we were not told to vacate the houses. Since the houses were unexpectedly razed, our children’s documents and other valuables in the houses have been destroyed,” the residents added angrily.
They also expressed fury about representatives failing to come to their help in times of need. “They come here only to campaign and get our votes. When questioned about the propriety of destroying the houses, the police officers assaulted us,” some of them said.
Sara Saif Saufique, one of the residents in the Fakir Colony, said, “My family has been living here for three decades, but has unexpectedly lost the house since the officers did not give us notice. They came at around 4:30 am on Saturday, when we were sleeping, and started destroying the houses.”
She said with fury, further, “The officials also forcibly evicted us from the houses, without even permitting us to gather our winterwear or blankets.”
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Heavy rain, hailstorms likely to lash Uttarakhand on Tuesday; IMD issues warning
Dehradun/Pithoragarh (PTI): The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued a warning for heavy rain and hailstorms across several districts of Uttarakhand on Tuesday, as temperatures remained markedly below normal in the region.
Heavy rainfall is likely at isolated places in Dehradun, Haridwar, Tehri, Pauri, Nainital, Champawat, and Udham Singh Nagar districts. Most places across all districts are expected to receive light to moderate rain or thunderstorms, while higher reaches are likely to witness snowfall, officials said on Monday.
The weather department warned of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, hail and intense spells of rain in six districts, including Dehradun and Nainital. Gusty winds with speeds reaching 40-50 kmph are also expected at isolated locations in these areas and other hilly districts.
In the state capital, Dehradun, the sky is forecast to remain partly cloudy with light rain and thunderstorms accompanied by gusty winds of 30-40 kmph.
The maximum and minimum temperatures in the city are expected to hover around 31 degrees Celsius and 19 degrees Celsius, respectively.
Maximum temperatures during the past 24 hours remained markedly below normal in the hills and appreciably below normal in the plains. While no significant change in temperature is expected over the next 2-3 days, the IMD predicts a rise of 3-5 degrees Celsius during the subsequent 3-4 days.
Rainfall was recorded in several areas after 8.30 am today, with Ramnagar receiving 31.5 mm and Nainital recording 26.5 mm. Other areas, including Pithoragarh, Khatima and Champawat, also reported moderate precipitation.
Authorities have stopped a batch of 36 Adi Kailash pilgrims at the Dharchula base camp and placed the high-altitude yatra route on high alert following heavy rains and hailstorms in the district on Monday.
Dharchula SDM Ashish Joshi said the pilgrimage was halted due to adverse weather conditions. The issuance of new inner-line passes has been suspended until the weather normalises.
With 1,700 passes issued so far, pilgrims already at higher camps are being monitored for safety, the official added.
