Ambika
Pandit, TNN | Jul 20, 2012, 01.50AM IST
NEW
DELHI: As part of a major drive, the Delhi government's revenue
department will step up action to free large tracts of gram sabha
land from the clutches of encroachers. The reclaimed land will be
allotted to the education department for setting up of schools so
that the RTE Act can be implemented in its true spirit. The drive
will cover all nine districts.
Reeling
under a shortage of schools for decades, villages like Dindarpur in
Najafgarh are a telling example of how encroachments have deprived
children of education, and residents of basic facilities like
dispensaries and maternity homes. TOI visited Dindarpur to take a
look at the ground reality.
As
one enters the area, a red school building with a sprawling
playground can be seen on one side of Jhatikra intersection. A board
hangs outside saying this government school for boys was inaugurated
a fortnight ago. Once you're inside the premises, you find out that
this used to be private school which came up on gram sabha land over
a decade ago. A legal battle followed as the Dindarpur Gram Sudhar
Samiti fought to get the land back from the encroachers. The row
ended only with the intervention of the Supreme Court in 2011 when
all states were directed to remove illegal constructions from gram
sabha land. The revenue department issued eviction orders but when
authorities failed to abide by the directive, the school was sealed
and handed over to the Delhi government's education department in
March.
Sub-divisional
magistrate (Najafgarh), Krishna Mohan Uppu, said, "To ensure
that the infrastructure is not wasted, the school was allotted to the
education department. In two other such cases, gram sabha land has
been allotted to schools. In one case, an ice factory was shut down
to make way for a school since schools are needed to meet
requirements of the RTE Act," Uppu said.
Till
the school at Jhatikra intersection was handed over to the
government, children of Dindarpur had no choice but to study in a
crammed school on an adjacent road. "The new school has provided
much relief. It has more than 1,000 boys on the rolls. The education
department has planned a new block to accommodate more students,"
said Dindarpur Gram Sudhar Samiti member Deen Dayal. Another Samiti
member Satbir Singh said that both his sons have joined the new
school which is expected to cater to nearly 20 unauthorized colonies
in Dindarpur.
Delhi's
revenue secretary and divisional commissioner Vijay Dev says that
strict action will be taken to free more gram sabha land. "The
Supreme Court directive will be implemented aggressively. All nine
districts have been asked to identify Gram Sabha land under
encroachment and lying vacant. The reclaimed land will first be
allotted for schools so that the RTE Act can be fully implemented.
Health facilities are our next priority," Dev said. The surveys
have already been completed in northwest and northeast districts.
Copyright
© 2012 Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All rights reserved.
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