Gompa road residents look to MC chief for removal of encroachments
Tourism beneficiaries and residents of the Gompa road area in Manali town are now hopeful that the newly elected president of the Manali Municipal Council (MC) will resolve the long-pending issue of encroachments by vendors on footpaths of the area.
A beneficiary Kishan said residents had been raising the matter for the past over four years, but the authorities concerned had not even once taken action regarding the encroachments here, while frequent encroachment removal drives were carried out in other areas of Manali town.
A resident Vinay said the entire footpath on the Gompa road was covered by vendors and the pedestrians had to commute on the narrow road, which witnessed heavy traffic, increasing the risk of accidents. He said, “A large number of tourists visit the Buddhist monastery (Gompa) and encroachments by the vendors on the footpath are a major nuisance. These vendors have been permanently settled here for the past about four years.”
Newly elected MC president Manoj Larje has directed to issue notices to clear the footpaths of encroachments. He said, “The campaign, Swachhata Prahari, has been launched to make the tourist town organised and clean. If shopkeepers do not remove encroachments themselves, the MC will take action and the traders will also have to bear these expenses.”
The president said people were facing difficulty in walking at many places here. He added, “To make the town organised and beautiful, cooperation is requested from all people. First, notices will be issued to remove encroachments and after this, action will be taken against the violators.”
The vendors have set up temporary stalls on tables on footpaths of Gompa Road, Mall Road, Manu Market, Sabzi Market and Model Town areas of Manali town. This is causing filth and choking of the drains as well and is a violation of the Himachal Pradesh Municipal Act. In view of this, the MC has prepared to issue notices to the offenders to remove the encroachments.
The MC office-bearers have made it clear that the encroachments on the footpaths and drains should be removed immediately, otherwise the MC will take action. The expenses for this will also be taken from the shopkeeper concerned. Legal action will be taken against those who repeatedly do illegal encroachments. The licence of their shop can also be cancelled.
