LDA drive to evict illegal occupants sluggish

LUCKNOW: The Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) is facing an uphill task in evicting illegal occupants from its rented properties across the city, because its eviction drive lacks steam.

In a survey, the development body identified 900 rented properties under illegal possession and launched a drive in March to evict the illegal occupants, serving notices to around 700 illegal occupants till date.

But the LDA has been to seal only 38 such properties, most of them shops and garages.

“This shows that the development authority is moving at

› We will expedite the drive to evict illegal occupants. Notices are being served to them. We have also decided to sell rented properties. The rent which the LDA is getting is very little as compared to the market price. RAJIV KUMAR, officer on special duty, LDA

snail’s pace to remove illegal occupants from its rented properties,” said an LDA official.

The development authority’s properties under illegal possession are spread all over the city, including Napier Road Colony, Kapoorthala complex, Pandey Ka Talab, Balda Road Colony, Lalkuan, Paper Mill Colony, Akbari Gate, Tilak Nagar, Chowk, Billochpura, Lawrence Terrace, Aishbagh and Hata Khuda Baksh

In this drive, the development authority has also started realising pending rent from defaulters.

“We will expedite the drive to evict illegal occupants. Notices are being served to them,” said Rajiv Kumar, officer on special duty, LDA, who is spearheading the drive.

At this pace, it would not be easy for the development authority to get back its rented properties. It would have to expedite the sealing process, an official said.

The development authority has also decided to sell its rented properties in possession of tenants for the past four decades.

“We have also decided to sell rented properties. The rent which the LDA is getting is very little as compared to the market price,” said Kumar.

It may be pointed out that the development authority has also launched a drive against commercial use of residential properties and restaurants operating from residential spaces across the city.