Unauthorised colonisers take advantage of coronavirus-induced lockdown

Sunit Dhawan

Tribune News Service

Rohtak, June 12

While the officials of the Town and Country Planning and Police departments were deployed to ensure effective enforcement of lockdown and other Covid-related duties in order to control the pandemic, several unapproved colonies came up in Rohtak.

Sources maintain that while three new unauthorised came up at Rohtak in the month of May, construction activities at certain old unapproved colonies, which had been stopped by the authorities concerned prior to the lockdown, also resumed.

“The unscrupulous colonisers took advantage of the relaxation in lockdown granted for construction activities while the government offices were closed and the officials concerned engaged in Covid-related duties,” said Mandeep Sihag, District Town Planner (DTP), Rohtak, while talking to The Tribune here today.

Sihag said they launched a demolition drive with the help of the police force as soon as the illegal constructions going on at the new and old unapproved colonies came to their notice.   

“We have demolished several illegal constructions and the campaign to curb such activities will go on,” he asserted.

Pointing out that the unapproved builders lure unsuspecting residents with low-priced plots, the DTP appealed to the people not to get defrauded of their hard-earned money by falling prey to such unscrupulous elements.

Meanwhile, the police have arrested a man, his wife and her brother who used to dupe residents in the name of selling plots. They used to sign agreements for selling plots and took advance money from the prospective buyer(s), but disappeared on the day fixed for the registration of sale-deeds.

The SHO (Sampla), Inspector Kulbir Singh, said Sanjay of Jhanjh Kalan village in Jind district, his wife Geeta and her brother Pawan had defrauded 12 persons of lakhs of rupees.