Gurgaon: Nearly 3,500 temporary encroachments have been removed from eight key roads in the city since Oct 8, with enforcement teams claiming that almost 90% of identified obstructions have been cleared. The focus has now shifted from removal to preventing their recurrence through daily patrolling, installation of protective grills, restoration of footpaths and development of green belts.Around 50 personnel are deployed daily, while GMDA CEO PC Meena is personally monitoring the exercise. Fresh encroachments detected along Sector 50-51 have been ordered cleared within two days. Medanta Road has seen grills installed at four vulnerable locations.The eight roads covered under the drive include Sector 30-31, Sector 40-41, Sector 46-47, Medanta Road, Sector 51-57, Sector 50-51, Sanath Road and Udyog Vihar-Sector 32/39. An inspection by town planner (enforcement) RS Batth on Monday found that most stretches were free of fresh encroachments. However, several spots along Sector 50-51 had witnessed fresh occupation, prompting directions to clear them within two days.“Removing encroachments is only one part of the exercise. Our focus is to ensure that the public spaces reclaimed remain free of unauthorised occupation. Wherever required, protective infrastructure is being created to prevent recurrence,” Meena said. The temporary encroachments — numbering 3,500 — that have been removed include roadside carts, makeshift structures and other obstructions. However, unlike previous anti-encroachment exercises, GMDA is now attempting to make the action permanent with a slew of measures.The shift from removal to prevention is significant, given that roadside vendors and temporary structures have frequently returned to locations cleared during earlier drives. GMDA has now deployed dedicated teams for daily patrolling to ensure that public spaces do not get occupied again. At Medanta Road, around five encroachment-prone locations have been cleared. Protective grills have been installed at four spots, while plantation work has also been undertaken to secure adjoining green spaces.Around 50 personnel, supported by machinery and enforcement resources, are being deployed every day. Assistant town planners are supervising field teams, while Batth is leading the enforcement exercise under the CEO’s direct monitoring. The authority has also coordinated with other departments to shift roadside carts from several locations.The drive has received appreciation from resident welfare associations of Sectors 31 and 40, which have written to the GMDA chief acknowledging improvements in road conditions and public spaces. The real test, however, will be whether GMDA can sustain the gains after the enforcement teams move away. With protective grills, pedestrian infrastructure and green belts being taken up alongside daily surveillance, the authority is attempting to ensure that the 3,500 removed encroachments do not simply return in a different form.
