The Supreme Court on Thursday rued that major cities have “turned into slums” due to unbridled encroachments.
The court blamed the local bodies for allowing slums to mushroom in major cities. A Bench led by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar said municipal corporations and local bodies needed to take responsibility to clear encroachers off public lands.
The court addressed the Railways, which it called one of the largest landowners in the country, about the vast scale of encroachments on its lands.
The Bench said the ordinary citizen was paying tax, and it was the responsibility of the Railways to protect public property from trespassers.
“This is the sad story going on for 75 years and we are celebrating the 75th year of independence next year ... It is ultimately the taxpayers’ money which will go down the drain,” the court remarked orally, calling for stern actions against encroachments.
The court was hearing appeals against the nods given by the Gujarat and Punjab and Haryana High Courts to evict encroachers from railway property.
