Jharkhand minister stops anti-encroachment drive in Bokaro

Speed Post News Network

Bokaro: Jharkhand cabinet minister Louis Marandi ordered for stopping of  anti-encroachment drive in Bokaro on August 3 night. Summoning Bokaro SP Y S Ramesh  and Chas (Bokaro) SDO Shashi Ranjan  for urgent  meeting at Bokaro circuit house at 10.4p pm on Wednesday, Jharkhand cabinet minister Louis Marandi  asked them to immediately stop anti-encroachment drive in Bansgora Panchayat  touching Satanpur hillocks near sector XII of Bokaro steel city  where hundreds of land sharks have grabbed more than 51 acre  of forest land of which 15 acres were cleared on Wednesday while the remaining land was to be cleared on Thursday.

,The minister  who was passing through Bokaro city, was persuaded by Bokaro MLA Viranchi Narain and his  supporters to summon these two  senior officers who were told that till Bokaro deputy commissioner R M Ray returns from leave the drive must be stopped.

“Don’t you know it is monsoon season. Where will the people living in dozens of huts will go,” fumed  the minister  who  did not know that not a single hut is built on the encroached  forest land  and forest department officials  had on Wednesday had demolished mostt of the boundarywalls and two big houses on the land.

“ I was surprised  why was I summoned for  urgent meeting at the late evening hours along with SDO. In fact, Bokaro DFO  P R Naidu should have been called who would have given the correct picture of encroachment on the forest land  to the minister. We explained everything to the minister but her direction led to stopping of  this anti-encroachment  drive which will start only after the DC returns from leave,” stated the SP adding that after the meeting the minister  feared  she thinks she was misguided by few politician who gave her a wrong picture.When contacted Chas SDO  Shashi Ranjan stated that the anti-encroachment  drive to get forest land vacated has  been stopped but will again start.

However,  Jharkhand revenue minister Amar Boury  said that it seems the minister did not have all information regarding the drive carried on Wednesday to clear encroached forest land.“ I think the Welfare minister was misguided as she did not have all information about the drive,” he said adding ” I think she was told that several huts have been demolished  in the drive which is not true.”Anti-encroachment drive will start  again  to clear  all government land, the minister said.

It may be mentioned here that Bokaro administration led by Chas SDO Shashi Ranjan , DSP Ajay Kumar , divisional  forest officer P R Naidu , two inspectors and 60  cops along with two dozen  workers  and  two excavators carried  out massive anti-encroachment drive on Wednesday in about 15 acre of land in Bandhgora panchayat touching Satanpur hillock next to proposed four lane road on NH—23 connecting Ranchi via-Bokaro-Chas  uprooting boundary wall in more than 700 metre belonging to different persons divided into dozens of big and  small plots. The drive was to be carried out on Thursday too to clear 36 acre of forest land at Bandhgora.