The Ghaziabad development authority on Monday razed a stone crusher to the ground which was operating illegally near Ahinsa Khand 2, Indirapuram.
Stone crusher razed to the ground
In what might be termed as a valiant feat, the Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) finally razed to the ground a stone-crusher operating illegally on the flood plains of Hindon river near Ahinsa Khand 2 of Indirapuram on Monday.
Several other structures including a banquet hall and illegal plots which were spread over several acres of flood plains’ land were also razed in the drive.
Residents of high rises of Ahinsa Khand 2 have been consistently complaining of severe dust pollution due to the operations of the stone crusher near the residential area. Residents said that trucks carrying construction material from the crusher used to pass though the densely populated residential area round the clock.
However, the action of the GDA has brought cheer to the residents of the area.
“We are really thankful to the authorities that our complaint has finally been acted upon. At least the residents will be relieved from the dust pollution caused by the crusher and the movement of trucks through our neighbourhood will also be affected. Now it is time to install the height barrier on the Hindon-Pushta intersection,” said Anil Sharma, general secretary of Ashiana Upvan society.
Residents and doctors residing in the high rises of the area complained of recurring cases of respiratory disorders caused by dust from the stone crusher. Residents of Niho Scottish Gardens, the society closest to the crusher had to keep their balconies tight shut to stop the dust from pilfering into their living quarters.
“We are specially thankful to Prabhat Kumar, commissioner of Meerut zone and Ritu Maheshwari, the vice chairperson of GDA for the action. Several senior officials had been posted here before and we had tried to communicate with them through various means. However, no action was being initiated against the aforementioned encroachments. Each and every society in this area was concerned due to this crusher. Now we are highly relieved,” said Alok Kumar, president of Federation Apartment Owners Association of Ghaziabad.
The crusher had encroached around 25 acres of floodplain land while the illegal plots and banquet hall had encroached several more acres. RP Singh, enforcement in-charge of GDA, told City Spidey that the area where the crusher and other structures had come up is marked as the ‘flood plain zone’ in the authority’s master plan for year 2021.
Singh further said that the action saw severe resistance from locals and the people who had encroached on the land. However, Singh maintained that the anti -encroachment drives would continue.
