Committee set up to clear Mahisbathan encroachment hurdle

Kolkata: The state government has constituted a committee that will be instrumental in clearing the encroachment at Salt Lake's Mahisbathan that is posing a hurdle in the construction of a viaduct of the New Garia- Airport Metro project. An initial plan has been made to shift the occupiers to a nearby address at AQ 9 which is lying vacant.

The committee that has been formed, headed by Bidhannagar MLA Sujit Bose, includes representatives from Nabadiganta Industrial Township Authority, West Bengal Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation, Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, the state Transport department and Bidhannagar City Police etc.

"We will write to the state Urban Development department seeking permission to shift the residents temporarily at the vacant address in AQ 9 during the construction work of the Metro. They will shift to their old place after the construction work is over. Efforts will be made to relocate the residents before Durga Puja," said a senior state government official.

A meeting was held in presence of state Fire and Emergency Services minister Sujit Bose on Friday to clear the logjam. Hidco chairman Debashis Sen, senior officials of RVNL and Bidhannagar City Police were present during the meeting.

The construction of the viaduct has been pending for a reasonable time as the contractor engaged by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL), the implementing agency, is unable to bring in types of machinery for construction of the viaduct due to the said encroachment.

The contractor who has been awarded the work by RVNL has threatened to leave the spot if it is not cleared by November.

According to sources, it was agreed during a Chief Secretary-level meeting some time back that the state Transport department will bear the cost of rehabilitating the encroachers and District Magistrate North 24-Parganas will supervise the rest.