3 acres of defence land cleared of encroachments

In a joint operation led by the Defence Estates Office, Delhi Circle, nearly three acres of defence land in the Mehram Nagar area of Delhi Cantonment near Terminal 1D of the IGI airport was cleared of encroachments in the past one week. Of this, nearly two acres of defence land was reclaimed on Friday.

During this ongoing drive, officials from the Defence Estates Office, Delhi Circle, removed longstanding unauthorised parking zones and impounded a significant number of vehicles. The action was carried out with the support from the Delhi Cantonment Board, Local Military Authorities and the Delhi Police. The operation also involved the removal of numerous small and large slums as well as illegal animal shelters occupying the land.

This initiative aims to free prime defence land from unlawful occupation and utilise it in the national interest.

Notably, a similar large-scale action was taken last week to remove illegal parking and unauthorised occupations from 1 acre of defence land at Mehram Nagar, Delhi Cantonment.

In continuation to that, today two-acre land near Terminal 1D in Mehram Nagar that had been illegally occupied for several years was reclaimed. The current estimated value of this defence land is close to Rs 100 crore. The government now intends to use such freed land for defence and military purposes.

It is important to highlight that Delhi, being the national capital, has a constant demand for land from government and defence organisations. Hence, today’s action is considered highly significant in the ongoing efforts to clear illegal encroachments.

Varun Kalia, Defence Estates Officer, Delhi Circle, said safeguarding defence land is not just about preserving a territory but about upholding national security. Encroachments on defence land are silent threats to national security and strict actions will continue against all encroachers. The reclaimed land will be used in national interest.

It is worth mentioning that the Ministry of Defence is the largest land owning government body with nearly 17.5 lakh acres of land spread across the country. Safeguarding these lands paves way for strategic and operational readiness of forces.

The exercise was carried out in light of the security concern following the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor.

Delhi