Gandhinagar woke up to the rumble of bulldozers on Thursday as civic authorities launched a sweeping demolition drive to reclaim government land along the Sabarmati riverbank.
In an operation that began at 4 am in the Pethapur area, the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC), the state Roads and Buildings (R&B) department and local police moved in to clear nearly one lakh square metres of encroached land – property officials say is worth about Rs 1,000 crore.
According to District Superintendent of Police Ravi Teja Vasamsetty, almost 700 unauthorised structures had been marked for removal. By Thursday afternoon, about 150 houses and shops had already been razed. “The drive is underway under the supervision of 20 joint teams of R&B and GMC. We have deployed around 700 policemen, including senior officers, to ensure the operation goes smoothly,” he told reporters.
Excavators, trucks and demolition squads lined the riverbank as residents watched the crackdown unfold. Authorities say the anti-encroachment push will continue over the next two to three days to clear the remaining structures.
“The reclaimed land belongs to the government and is crucial for upcoming infrastructure and public projects. We’re determined to finish the exercise without delay,” added Vasamsetty.