LIT fails to comply with orders

Kuldip Bhatia

Ludhiana, July 8

Despite having given a written undertaking through its chairman in the Punjab and Haryana High Court to take stern action against the violation of building bylaws, standard design and illegal change of land use in colonies developed by it, the Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT) has failed to check violations in most of its colonies here.

Even directions issued from time to time by the Local Bodies Department, Punjab, in this regard have failed to move the LIT authorities into action.

That the LIT officials don’t care two hoots to spate of complaints, directions from the Local Bodies Department and orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court where acting against violations and illegal change of land use is concerned in most of their colonies, is evident from the free run that the law-breakers have been given in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar and other colonies developed by the Trust.

“Even after specific complaints were lodged with senior officials of the engineering branch of the Trust against ongoing construction of two shop-cum-flats (SCFs), which have been clubbed together and in another case, construction of a residential house with 100 per cent coverage and that too without any approved building plan, no action has been taken and the construction work on these buildings is near completion,” said area residents.

In both cases, the allottees were guilty of illegal change of land use and violation of terms and conditions of allotment (in case of SCFs) and non-compoundable violation of building bylaws, in case of residential house, which was liable to be demolished.

Similarly, no action has been taken against many other owners of residential houses for converting parts of buildings into shops and opening a passage from the rear side of the property, the residents alleged.

The Council of RTI Activists president, Rohit Sabharwal, who has also filed a contempt petition against the LIT and Municipal Corporation for their failure to carry out the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court with regard to illegal change of land use and violation of building bylaws, said he had made several written representations to the Trust authorities, pointing out violations in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar, Rajguru Nagar and other colonies without evoking any positive response.

Citing orders, Sabharwal said the High Court had placed on record an undertaking given by the LIT and MC, which said, “The counsel for respondents No 2 and 3 (Trust and MC, respectively) states that as and when any violation is brought to their notice, appropriate authority shall take action against the violators.”

He said the issue of slack enforcement was being taken up with senior officials of the Local Bodies Department and would also be brought to the notice of the High Court during the next hearing of contempt petition.