News: High court vacates stay on demolishing houses, GMDA resumes construction of Basai flyover-01-03-2020
Updated On: Mar 01, 2020
Almost a year after the work on building a flyover at Basai Chowk was stayed, the Punjab and Haryana High Court (HC) allowed the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) to demolish 15 houses coming in way of the project alignment. The court, on February 25, vacated its earlier order (April 2019) granting relief to petitioners against the GMDA’s demolition notice.
High Court order said, “The work has started at the site for erecting pillars for the flyover. It is evident that for accessing the site, heavy machinery, including JCB machines, may have to be used. It appears that pervious order of April 18, 2019, dispossession of petitioner was stayed on the ground that petition under Section 24(2) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition (Rehabilitation and Settlement) Act 2013 was pending.”
“In view of the changed circumstances, particularly the no-objection given by the petitioner for construction of pillars for construction of flyover, also in view of the requirement of access to the site as mentioned above, we feel that there is no ground, whatsoever, for continuation of the stay order. Stay order hereby stands vacated,” the bench said.
The flyover is part of a 5.8-km road widening project from Hero Honda Chowk to Dwarka Expressway. This road, which includes two flyovers—one at Basai and another at Captain Umang Bhardwaj Chowk—and an underpass at Khandsa, is a proposed national highway.
The GMDA’s work to widen the two-lane road to six lanes has been underway one year. Progress was halted when plot owners, whose land was to be acquired for the erecting pillars, went to court demanding better compensation. The Haryana government had acquired land for the road widening in 2009-10.
“Petitioners had taken compensation but wanted alternative plots as well. Since, presence of houses had been disturbing work, the government filed civil miscellaneous petition in the court seeking permission to remove them and the court allowed. Petitioners’ demand for plots will be heard on April 18,” a GMDA officer, who did not wish to be identified, said.
“Now, there is no hindrance in flyover construction. We will try to complete the work on time and improve traffic movement between NH-48 and Dwarka Expressway,” GMDA chief executive officer VS Kundu said.
A team of enforcement official started work Saturday. “There were four multi-storey houses that were razed over weekend,” said an enforcement official.
“Besides land litigation, delay in shifting of utilities such as sewer, water, electricity and trees etc delayed the project. Now, alignment is almost free from encumbrances. We will complete project by August 31, 2020,” said a GMDA official.
On April 15, 2017, chief minister ML Khattar had directed the GMDA to widen the road from Hero Honda Chowk to Dwarka Expressway to six lanes. Accordingly, the GMDA prepared a DPR of ₹111 crore. The GMDA has to complete the project by Aug 2020.
