Encroachments cleared on Mysore footpaths

About 551 properties, mostly shops on D Devaraj Urs Road, Sayyaji Rao Road, Ashoka Road, Ane Sarot Road, Vinobha Road and Irwin Road, that had extended their properties with stairs, canopies, name boards etc., encroaching footpaths, were cleared in the drive amidst police bandobust.

The authorities had chosen Sunday for the drive to prevent any hiccup in the form of stay orders from the court. Previously, there were instances of traders succeeding in bringing a stay order against such exercises of the civic body. It was a co-ordinated effort of the MCC, Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA), Cesc, Telecommunication and also Fire Service department that contributed in executing the plan.

MCC Commissioner Raykar said that such temporary encroachments had been identified on 18 important roads in a survey that was conducted in 2007.

Among the identified roads, the drive was carried on in only six roads on Sunday. The remaining will be covered in next two phases, planned to be held probably in a fortnight or a month, he said.

Except for BSNL customers, cellular phone services of the remaining company were jammed during the period of the drive to check the victims from spreading into a group for unlawful assembling, Police Commissioner Sunil Agarwal said.