CIC: Land encroachment is a serious issue & should be taken up strictly by concerned authorities - CIC: Measures such as regular monitoring, inspection of public and private land, enforcement of existing laws and regulations, removal of encroachments etc.
12 Jul, 2023O R D E R
FACTS
The Appellant vide RTI application sought information, as under:-
Loose translation - Unauthorised occupation in the public lane in Jagpura area and action taken in relation to the past complaint in the matter.
The PIO vide letter dated21.03.2022 transferred the RTI application. Dissatisfied with the reply of the CPIO, the Appellant approached the FAA.The FAA vide order dated 30.05.2022, furnished a reply to the Appellant and disposed off the Appeal.
Thereafter, the Appellant filed a Second Appeal before the Commission.
HEARING:
Facts emerging during the hearing:
The following were present:
Appellant: Present in Person
Respondent: Mr Navin Kaul AE, Present in Person
The Appellant while reiterating the contents of the RTI Application submitted that no information has been furnished to him so far. He alleged that he had filed this RTI Application as a neighbour of his indulged in illegal encroachment in a common area, which has an impact on 8 houses of the neighbourhood. Hence he said he has filed this RTI Application on behalf of all of them.
The respondent stated that the information pertains to the Maintenance dept. They have already transferred the RTI Application to them.
DECISION:
Keeping in view the facts of the case and the submissions made by both the parties, the Commission observes that in the present case, there is complete abdication of responsibility on the part of the local authorities to stop the encroachment activities. The Commission observes that the land encroachment is a serious issue and should be taken up strictly by the concerned authorities. Encroachment on public or private land can lead to several negative consequences such as loss of property rights, environmental degradation, displacement of local communities, and even conflict between different groups. Therefore, it is important that the authorities take strict action to prevent and curb land encroachment. This can involve measures such as regular monitoring and inspection of public and private land, enforcement of existing laws and regulations, removal of encroachments, and penalizing those who engage in such activities.
Therefore, the Commission directs the CPIO Executive Engineer Building 1 department and Executive Engineer Maintenance department to furnish a point wise, correct and complete information to the Appellant, strictly in accordance with the spirit of transparency and accountability as enshrined in the RTI Act, 2005 within a period of 21 days from the date of receipt of this order under the intimation to the Commission. The Respondent may redact the personal details of the third parties.
The Appeal stands disposed accordingly.
(Uday Mahurkar)
(Information Commissioner)
Citation: Mr. Sanjay Kumar Jolly v. O/o Executive Engineer(Bldg.)-I, South Delhi Municipal Corporation, CIC/SDMCE/A/2022/142101-UM; Date of Decision: 22.05.2023