Hisar admn demolishes 20 houses at Rakhgarhi village

BUILT ON HARAPPANERA MOUNDS, A TOTAL OF 201 HOUSES WILL BE RAZED FOLLOWING HIGH COURT DIRECTIVE

HISAR:THE Hisar administration on Wednesday demolished more than 20 houses constructed on an archaeologically important site at Rakhigarhi village of Narnaund subdivision, following the directions of the Punjab and Haryana high court.

The demolition exercise was carried out amid heavy police security under sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Rajiv Ahlawat.

Some women of the village protested against the demolition, but Ahlawat assured them that the administration, which is following the court orders, will hear their grievances too.

Hisar deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Siddharth Dhanda told Hindustan Times that heavy police force was present on the site to maintain law and order in the area.

The local administration had served eviction notices to 201 houses constructed on the Rakhigarhi mounds on December 24 last year.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had conducted a survey to identify the protected area and had found that these 201 houses were built on Harappanera mounds 2, 3, 4 and 5. The administration had served the notices following Punjab and Haryana court directions.

The villagers later held a panchayat and sat on a dharna against the eviction notices served on them. They demanded that government allot them alternative land where they can build their houses again.

In May 2012, the Global Heritage Fund had declared Rakhigarhi as one of the 10 most endangered heritage sites in Asia. The Haryana government plans to set up a museum at Rakhigarhi with multiple facilities for researchers.