New Delhi:Center on Wednesday informed the Parliament that 814.55 hectares of railway land is under encroachment across its 17 zones.
The statement was being made in a written reply by Union Minister Piyush Goyal to a question in Lok Sabha where he mentioned state-wise details maintained by Railways. He also stated that most of the encroachments are near to the Railway stations.
"Most of the encroachments on Railway land are in the approaches of stations in Metros and big cities in form of slums around railway tracks," he said.
As per the record, highest encroachment is being made in the Northern Railway Zone with 175.99 hectares of encroached land, followed by South Eastern Zone with 141.16 hectares of encroached land.
The Supreme Court of India passed an order on August 31 in context of piling up of waste or garbage by the sides of railway tracks in Delhi, has directed for preparation of a comprehensive plan for removal of jhuggi present along the railway track and removal of encroachments in the safety zone in the region of National Capital within the period of 3 months.
However, a petition was being filed by Congress leader Ajay Maken, seeking to recall the order. On Monday, Centre informed the Supreme Court that no immediate removal of slums will be done until the Railways in consultation with Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs find a solution for slum dwellers within the period of 4 weeks.
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