The Pachhwadoon belt of Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand, is in the spotlight for several reasons these days. In the Bairagiwala and Kushalpur area, conversation is heating up not just over law and order but also over alleged illegal occupation of government land and a rapidly shifting population mix. Local residents and elected representatives say government land here has been grabbed on a large scale.
How Much Land Is At Stake
According to local people, roughly 400 bigha of government land in the Bairagiwala and Kushalpur area has been illegally occupied. Of this, about 90 bigha is said to be land that had been earmarked for a cemetery. Residents allege that years of unchecked encroachment have changed the entire character of the area, with a clear shift now visible in its population structure as well.
Vinod Kashyap's Death and the Land Angle
Some locals are viewing the recent death of Vinod Kashyap in the area through the lens of these land disputes. However, there has been no official confirmation of any such link so far, and the police investigation into the matter is still underway. The brother of the deceased Vinod Kashyap, who has long raised various issues through the Right to Information (RTI) route, alleges that people were brought in from other states to occupy government land. He claims the scale of the encroachment could be even more than 400 bigha, and says he has lodged complaints with the administration several times over the issue.
Allegations Over Cemetery Land
On the other side, Khalid Mansoor, the district president of the BJP Alpsankhyak Morcha, has alleged that irregularities have taken place in the roughly 90 bigha earmarked for a cemetery. He says there have been serious lapses in the management and use of this land, complaints about which have been sent to the concerned departments as well as the Waqf Board. He has demanded a fair investigation and strict action in the matter.
Big Encroachments Cleared Before
It is worth recalling that a few years ago, following a High Court order, large-scale encroachment was removed from UJVNL land lying on both banks of the Shakti canal in the Vikasnagar area. During that drive, more than a thousand constructions, along with religious structures, were also pulled down. In other words, encroachment on government land is nothing new for this region.
MLA Announces Verification Drive
Local MLA Sahdev Pundir says a wide-ranging verification of government land and the people settled on it will be carried out in the area. He added that the matter will also be discussed with Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, and that wherever illegal occupation is found, strict action will follow as per the rules.
What To Watch Next
The biggest question now is this: if government land kept getting occupied for years, just how effective was the monitoring by the departments responsible? It will also be interesting to see whether the proposed verification campaign ends up being a mere administrative formality, or whether it actually translates into concrete action on the ground.
