Public Works Department started the widening of the road between School of Mines to M G Circle at Robertsonpet here on Monday. JCB machines were pressed into action before the dawn under police protection. The machines were used to demolish several buildings from Sohan’s Building near M G Circle up to the School of Mines. Ten JCB machines are being used for the purpose.

The department has  identified 177 buildings as encroachment in the area. It has issued notices to the owners of these buildings. Among them, 15 building owners have approached the high court and have received a stay against  the demolition of their buildings. The PWD officials said most of the buildings, except those buildings under litigation, will be demolished.
The government had released Rs 6.50 crore to make this road a double road in 2013-14. It had released Rs 3 crore in 2015. The work, started at a total cost of Rs 9.50 crore, was completed between the School of Mines and Ashok Nagar Colony Gate. However, some years were spent in legal tussles between the PWD and the building owners. Several rounds of talks were held to solve the issue. Deputy Commissioner  Dr K V Trilok Chandra held a meeting with traders and sought their cooperation to clear the encroachment of the road.

Meanwhile, the application, filed by 15 building owners in the high court, is yet to be settled. In this backdrop, the district administration had stopped the work with a view to demolish all the buildings at one go. Several Kannada  organisations, political parties and Dalit organisations had staged a protest against the district administration’s move. Finally, the district administration relented and told the officials to demolish the buildings except those in litigation.

The 1.82 km road between School of Mines and M G Circle will be developed as a double road. Hundreds of people gathered at the place to see the demolition of buildings. PWD executive engineer Muni Anjanappa, assistant executive engineer Krishnamurthy and junior engineer Hanumappa took part in the operation. Hanumappa said the demolition drive will be continued on Tuesday too.