The drive has already evicted thousands of people who had been cultivating and residing on government land.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration has halted the anti-encroachment drive that snowballed into a major controversy. The drive has already evicted thousands of people who had been cultivating and residing on government land.
Bulldozers were used to remove encroachments of 20 Lakh kanals (2.5 lakh acres) of land across 20 districts of Jammu and Kashmir. Besides retrieving land, many structures have been demolished.
Sources say the government is coming up with a policy to protect small landholders and till that time officials have been asked to stop the anti-encroachment drive.
The opposition claims bulldozers are being used on communal lines and that the government is taking away the livelihood of people.
The drive, which started in January, was meant to retrieve state land allegedly encroached on by many, including politicians and senior state officials. When the order set off an outcry, J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and officials of his administration said only the encroachments by the “high and mighty” will be targeted in the drive. But in absence of any formal order or amendment of the original order, a mass eviction drive is being carried across the Union Territory.
