New Delhi:
A contingent of at least eight excavator machines slashed and razed through illegal constructions at Taimoor Nagar in southeast Delhi from 9am on Monday, as the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) began its demolition drive to clear unauthorised houses built along a critical drainage line, following orders from the Delhi high court.
#WATCH | Delhi Development Authority (DDA) carried out a demolition drive against illegal encroachment in Delhi’s Taimoor Nagar area. pic.twitter.com/sQkobVSTuj
— ANI (@ANI) May 5, 2025
Officials involved in the drive said they demolished around 100 structures under heavy police deployment and that the operation would be completed in two more days. The clearance will enable agencies to clean the drain and restore proper flow, they said.
The severely impaired sewage flow in the drain becomes an annual problem, which is particularly exacerbated during monsoon, when it backflows into residential areas across south and southeast Delhi such as New Friends Colony, Friends Colony, Maharani Bagh, Kalindi Colony and Jangpura, among others.
A senior DDA official present at the site, requesting anonymity, said the administration had issued multiple notices to residents, which were wilfully ignored. “It will take us two more days to complete the drive,” the official said.
Demolition drive was ordered by the high court:
The high court order to demolish the slums was issued on a batch of suo motu petitions it took up over severe waterlogging in the Capital due to clogged drains. A bench of justice Prathiba M Singh and Manmeet PS Arora directed for the demolition after DDA’s counsel submitted that pursuant to a joint inspection, the agency concluded that there was a need to raze around 100 illegal structures. “It needs to be demolished, We hope you have heard us. We don’t know who are the mafias who have taken money and sold the apartments… Let the action in terms of the inspection and demarcation be carried out from May 5,” the bench said.
