Anti-encroachment drive: Hundreds of shops demolished

Peshawar DC says campaign to continue till all illegal structures razed.

PESHAWAR: Around 300 shops have been destroyed since the district administration kicked off a large-scale anti-encroachment drive Monday night. Water Supply & Sanitation Program (WSSP) officials along with Peshawar DC Riaz Mehsud, Additional DC Usama Ahmad Warraich and Municipal Administrator Syed Zafar Ali Shah were present during the crackdown.

Mehsud said the drive started from Hashtnagri and would continue till the city was cleared of all forms of encroachment. Mehsud ordered the district administration to continue with the campaign in targeted areas such as Chowk Shadi Pir, Karim Pura Chowk, Ghanta Ghar and Shaheen Bazaar. The administration gave traders associations till February 20 to voluntarily remove their encroachments before taking matters into its own hands.

The district administration’s PRO, Firoz Shah, told The Express Tribune authorities had decided to reshape the provincial metropolis according to the plan mapped out for roads in the 1930s.

A joint raid of the district administration and the Peshawar Development Authority was conducted against illegal guest houses and clinics in Hayatabad. Mehsud said residential buildings were being used for commercial purposes.

Meanwhile, K-P Chief Minister Pervez Khattak also directed the district administration to take traders’ associations on board wherever they launch anti-encroachment drives. Last month, Khattak ordered a ban on illegal commercial activity in residential areas of the provincial capital.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th, 2015.