Encroachments along NH-5 razed in Solan

Tribune News Service

Solan, April 20

Following the Himachal Pradesh High Court orders, the district administration today started a campaign to remove encroachments at Saproon, Raboun and Samlech along the Solan-Shimla National Highway 5.

Several fruit and vegetable sellers, besides food kiosks were operating for the roadside for decades.

With no checks by the authorities concerned, the number of street vendors had increased with time.

A large number of vegetable and fruit stalls had come up in the past few months near Saproon Chowk, right under the nose of the administration. This had reduced the road width, causing inconvenience to commuters.

Even as the vendors had become a traffic bottleneck, the authorities preferred to turn a blind eye to the rising encroachments on the road.

A team led by Solan SDM Dr Monika and comprising Municipal Corporation Assistant Engineer, police, Regional Transport Officer and other civic body staff removed more than 60 encroachments from Saproon Chowk to Samlech.

Besides vehicles parked by roadside have been challaned by the traffic police.

The SDM added that the campaign would continue for the next few days and encroachments along on the highway till Salogra would be removed.

Though the roadside vendors were made aware of the anti-encroachment drive days in advance by the administration, they did not remove their kiosks on their own and continued to display their articles.

They were, however, again given time by the administration to remove their articles before machines brought by the civic body staff dismantled the illegal structures.

The civic body plans to construct a pedestrian path at Samlech to facilitate residents.

Some vendors had also availed shops in a vendor market set up by the civic body at Samlech.

Even as the shops were allotted in December last, the vendors did not shift and continued to operate from the roadside.

The vendor market has been set up at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore to rehabilitate the street vendors and rid the National Highway of encroachments.

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