1,000 huts demolished on riverbed in Ahmedabad

After a gap of six months, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has recommenced its demolition drive on the Sabarmati riverbed. On Saturday, AMC demolished around 1000 hutments on the Ellisbridge to Vadaj-Dudheshwar bridge stretch. Because of the drive, more than 5000 residents became homeless, as they have to vacate their houses and move away with their belongings.

AMC officials started the demolition at around 11am with more than 20 JCB machines and a similar number of trucks and other vehicles. To assist them, around 300 private security guards were deployed at different points on the riverbed. To avoid any untoward incident, more than 500 policemen, including women staff, were deployed in the demolition operation.  

The destruction of the huts sent shockwaves among the residents living at Ellisbridge, Khanpur and Dudheshwar areas, as they claimed that they were not given any notice. According to slum dwellers near Khanpur, they were allowed just half an hour to shift with their belongings. The move has greatly angered the residents who felt that they should be given notice of at least one day. "This is cheating by AMC, as we are told that demolition will not take place before November 25. We have lost our homes, in which we have been living since the 1980's," said Mohammad Bhanot, a father of four.

According to him, many residents of Khanpur's slum area, which lies just behind the Le Meridien hotel, have already applied for alternate homes, but their old residences have been demolished before they got their promised houses. "I have all the documents with me, duly signed and submitted with my residential proofs. But after living here for more than 20 years, me and my family are homeless now without having an alternate arrangement to live," said Bhanot, who showed the copies of the documents along with his voter ID card. 

Similarly, many other residents claimed that they have been forcibly evicted from their homes. According to Akhtar Saiyad, living near Nehru Bridge, AMC ignored court orders and started the demolition. "When it happened earlier in May, the high court asked the AMC to provide houses first and then evict us. But they have razed our homes before that," said Saiyad, who has been forced to take shelter under the bridge.

However, senior AMC officials denied the claims of the slum dwellers and said that everything has been done according to the law. "We are not doing any injustice to the slum dwellers living there. The high court had given the order to clear the place by November 7. Hence, every activity is ordered and is being monitored by the high court and we are following the same.

Also, they have been allotted houses and so there is no question of cheating. But temporarily, they will have to stay at different premises as the new houses aren't ready," said Guruprasad Mohapatra, Municipal Commissioner of AMC.