Jaipur: In response to a directive from the Rajasthan high court, the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) has initiated a comprehensive eviction campaign aimed at removing at least 3,000 encroachments, including homes and businesses, from the city roads that connect to 17 state highways.The operation is being carried out with a focus on adhering to the city’s Master Plan 2025, which serves as the benchmark for determining the width of roads. The JDA’s decision follows a high court order issued on Aug 19, which mandates the JDA and the state govt to identify and remove encroachments along roads linked to both state and national highways surrounding Jaipur. The directive came amidst proceedings related to a contempt petition concerning a public interest litigation (PIL) over encroachments on the city roads filed in 2022. Deputy Inspector General of the JDA enforcement wing, Rahul Katakey said that over the last two months, the civic body collaborated with the Public Works Department (PWD) to identify state highways connecting to the city roads. Besides, the city is notably traversed by five national highways, namely Delhi Road, Agra Road, Tonk Road, Ajmer Road and Sikar Road. Katakey said, “Based on the inputs, we have initially identified 17 state highways for the first phase of the eviction drive. We are now conducting another Plane Table (PT) Survey to determine the number of roads under our jurisdiction that connect these highways and the number of encroachers on these connecting roads.” He added, “Following the completion of the PT survey, proceedings against these encroachers will commence. Additional state highways and connecting roads will be identified in subsequent phases.” This eviction drive is poised to be the largest in the JDA’s 43-year history, said officials. Although the survey to ascertain the precise number of connecting roads and encroachments is still ongoing, officials estimate the removal of over 3,000 encroachments is necessary. A senior JDA official remarked, “More than 90% of the city roads connect to a state or a national highway. Imagine the number of encroachments we need to remove to ensure 100% implementation of the court order. The process would be time-consuming and need political will besides administrative efforts.” According to the high court’s order, once encroachments are identified, encroachers will be granted seven to eight days to remove their structures voluntarily.
