Massive anti-encroachment drive in Amakhujari forest; tear gas canister accidentally bursts during operation

In a massive crackdown, a joint team of forest, revenue and police departments cleared approximately 200 acres of forest land from encroachment in Amakhujari forest of Khandwa district on Monday. The operation, which lasted about six hours, saw the deployment of 600 officials and employees along with 30 JCB machines.

The action came a day after a team of 40 forest guards was attacked by encroachers when they attempted to stop illegal sowing in the same forest area. Eight forest staff were injured in Sunday's stone-pelting attack.

Monday's operation was conducted under heavy security cover. A 60-member contingent of women police personnel was also deployed to handle any potential resistance. The team carried tear gas shells for crowd control, though one canister accidentally burst due to the bumpy forest terrain, affecting some police personnel.

Administrative Officials Oversee Operation

District Collector Rishabh Gupta, Superintendent of Police Agam Jain, Additional SP Mahendra Taranekar and DFO Rakesh Kumar Damor were present at the site throughout the operation.

The encroachers had cleared trees and shrubs from the forest land and planted maize crops. The team used JCB machines to dig large contours across the area, making it impossible for encroachers to prepare fields or carry out sowing in the future.

Timber, Beds Seized from 13 Huts

Encroachers had built 13 temporary huts inside the forest. When the team demolished these structures, they recovered valuable teak wood logs and wooden beds (khatiyas). The seized material is being transported to the forest department office in tractors.

DFO Rakesh Kumar Damor said that after Sunday's stone-pelting incident, an FIR was registered and action has been taken against nine individuals.

Officer Injured in Bike Accident

Forest guard Pankaj Porwal, who was deployed in the Khalwa range, was called in from Burhanpur for the operation. While riding his bike to Amakhujari, he slipped near Gudi and fell, sustaining head injuries. He was initially taken to the district hospital but was later referred to Indore due to the severity of his injuries.

Sunday's Attack: Women Used as Shields

On Sunday, when the forest team arrived to clear the encroachment, nearly 400 encroachers attacked them. Women were pushed to the front and used as shields while the attackers pelted stones using slingshots (gofan). The forest guards were also attacked with sticks.

Eight forest guards suffered injuries in the attack. Some suffered head injuries while others had their ears cut. All injured were admitted to the district hospital.

The injured guards have been identified as Jwala Singh, Romank Nayak, Shailendra Yadav, Rajendra Singh Saktawat, Rajendra Bagdi, Pradeep Baghel, Chandrapal Tomar and Rahul Lodhi. They are part of a special flying squad recruited in 2025 to prevent encroachment in forests.

Allegations of Delayed Response

Injured forest workers have alleged that they did not receive help for nearly two hours after the attack. They claimed that police and ambulances did not arrive on time.

Massive Deployment for Monday's Operation

Around 600 employees from forest, revenue and police departments reached Amakhujari in approximately 200 vehicles, including both four-wheelers and two-wheelers. Additional SP Mahendra Taranekar confirmed that the police deployment included 14 officers and 200 personnel, while 400 forest staff participated in the operation.

"Due to moisture in the morning, there was some difficulty in removing the encroachment. About 30% of the encroachment has been cleared so far. There is no resistance at the moment," Taranekar said.

Rewa Collector Rebukes Officers Over Handpump Encroachment

A routine hearing in Rewa turned sharply confrontational after the collector pulled up a tehsildar and a naib tehsildar over a complaint that a government handpump had been blocked by private encroachment in Garhwa village of Huzur tehsil. The officer’s rebuke, delivered during the administrative meeting, quickly became the focus of the day as the administration moved to clear the site and restore access for villagers.

Complaint From Garhwa Village

The dispute was raised by Ramshiromani Mishra, a resident of Garhwa in the Govindgarh थाना area, who alleged that a public handpump had been taken over by local residents. According to the complaint, walls were raised around the handpump and an iron gate was installed, preventing other villagers from using it.

The issue mattered because the handpump was meant for public use, and residents said repeated applications had been ignored. The complaint also suggested a wider administrative lapse, with the matter allegedly remaining unresolved despite follow-ups from the village side.

Collector’s Sharp Reprimand

During the hearing, the collector reportedly lost patience over the delay and questioned the officers in blunt language, asking, “Kaahe ke tehsildar ho… kyun tehsildar ho aap?” The remark was aimed at the revenue officials present, and the collector also warned that suspension could follow if the matter was not fixed the same day.

The direction was clear: remove the encroachment by evening and make sure the handpump was available to the public again. The sharp warning reflected growing frustration over complaints that remain pending even when they concern basic civic access, especially in rural areas where a handpump can be the main source of water.

Team Sent To Site

Following the collector’s ultimatum, the revenue team moved to the spot and cleared the private occupation from around the handpump. By the evening, the government handpump was reported to have been freed from encroachment and restored for villagers’ use.

That immediate action appears to have resolved the specific grievance, at least for now. It also sent a strong signal to the local revenue machinery that delay in such matters would not be tolerated, particularly when a public utility is involved.

Public Utility Under Pressure

The incident has drawn attention because it comes at a time when access to water remains a sensitive issue across Rewa district. Reports in recent weeks have pointed to water stress in several parts of the region, with many handpumps either dry or under pressure during the summer months.

In that context, the blocking of even one functioning handpump can create immediate hardship for villagers. For local residents, the issue was not just about encroachment but about the practical loss of access to drinking water and the failure of the administrative system to act quickly enough.

Administrative Message

The episode also highlights the kind of pressure district collectors are increasingly placing on field-level staff in Madhya Pradesh when complaints involve government land or public assets. In Rewa, the collector’s response was direct, public and time-bound, leaving little room for further delay.

For the revenue department, the message was unmistakable: complaints about public facilities, especially water sources, are expected to be resolved on priority. The handpump at Garhwa may now be open again, but the sharper takeaway is that local officials in Rewa have been put on notice.

Rewa's Amahiya Encroachment Drive Sparks Political Firestorm

Congress Alleges Injustice Against the Poor as Administration Defends Anti-Encroachment Action in Madhya Pradesh

A routine anti-encroachment drive in Rewa's Amahiya locality has turned into a full-blown political flashpoint, with the Congress party accusing the local administration of targeting the poor without adequate notice or rehabilitation support. The Rewa municipal body and district administration, however, have defended the operation as lawful and necessary.

The Drive That Sparked the Row

The Rewa Nagar Nigam launched the encroachment removal campaign in the Amahiya area to clear illegal structures from public land. The drive, described by officials as part of a broader urban management exercise, has resulted in the demolition of several makeshift homes and establishments, leaving a number of families displaced.

The action comes amid wider efforts by civic bodies across Madhya Pradesh to reclaim encroached government land — a politically sensitive issue that frequently pits urban administrations against opposition parties.

Congress Submits Memorandum, Raises Rehabilitation Demand

Congress MLA Abhay Mishra visited the affected area and submitted a formal memorandum against the drive, accusing the administration of conducting demolitions without giving residents adequate time to relocate their belongings. He alleged that neither proper advance notice was served nor any concrete rehabilitation arrangement put in place for the families losing their homes.

Mishra also targeted Mayor Ajay Mishra 'Baba', claiming the top municipal official had failed to stand by the poor and had done little to intervene on behalf of affected residents during the demolition process.

Mayor Dismisses Allegations as Politically Motivated

Mayor Ajay Mishra 'Baba' came out strongly against the Congress claims, calling them baseless and politically driven. He stated that not a single affected person had approached him directly seeking assistance — a claim that, he argued, undermined the opposition's narrative.

The Mayor reiterated that the Nagar Nigam was functioning strictly within the bounds of law and that clearing illegal encroachments was not only the administration's right but its responsibility.

SDM Clarifies: Only 5 Qualify as Displaced

Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Anurag Tiwari brought a clearer administrative perspective to the debate. According to him, only five individuals across the entire affected stretch genuinely qualify under the displacement category — meaning they had some legitimate claim to the land or structure. The rest, he said, had been occupying public property through unauthorised encroachment.

Tiwari confirmed that the drive would continue as planned, and that proceedings would remain in accordance with established legal procedure. "Action is being taken under the rules and no one will face injustice," he said, according to sources.

Rehabilitation at the Heart of the Debate

At the crux of the political dispute lies the question of rehabilitation. Opposition voices argue that even if the encroachments were illegal, the human cost — particularly for economically vulnerable families — cannot be dismissed without offering alternative arrangements. Congress has demanded that affected families be provided transitional support before any further demolitions proceed.

The administration's position, meanwhile, is that the majority of those affected do not qualify for rehabilitation since their presence on the land was itself unauthorised.

A Familiar Political Flashpoint

Anti-encroachment drives have historically been a pressure point in Indian municipal politics, where the line between illegal occupation and informal housing for the urban poor is often blurred. In Rewa, this latest episode reflects a broader tension between civic governance imperatives and the ground realities of low-income settlements.

Both sides appear entrenched in their positions, and with the Nagar Nigam signalling that the operation will push ahead, further confrontations between the administration and the opposition cannot be ruled out.

What Comes Next

As per reports, the drive in Amahiya is expected to continue in phases. The Congress has indicated it will keep the pressure on both the municipal body and the district administration through public demonstrations and official representations. The matter could also find its way into the state assembly, given that an elected MLA has already formally intervened.

With only five families officially recognised under the displaced category, the fate of the remaining affected residents — and how the Rewa administration handles the political fallout — will be closely watched in the days ahead. This Rewa encroachment row is now part of a growing national conversation on balancing urban development with the rights of the poor.

Fresh survey triggers crackdown ahead of Holi as authorities face NGT deadline

In a major development concerning Bhopal's ecological conservation, revenue officials have identified 153 illegal structures within the 50-meter Full Tank Level (FTL) buffer zone of the iconic Upper Lake, popularly known as Bada Talab. The discovery has reignited concerns over rampant encroachment at the Ramsar-designated wetland of international importance.

The survey, conducted across TT Nagar subdivision and surrounding areas, revealed a mix of temporary slums and permanent constructions—some allegedly owned by influential individuals. Additionally, encroachments were detected on 15 parcels of government land in Khanugaon, where surveying teams faced minor altercations with residents on Friday.

Wetlands Act 2022 Triggers Automatic Action

Officials have clarified that any construction carried out after March 16, 2022—the date when the Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules came into effect—within the prescribed FTL buffer zone will be considered illegal regardless of permissions granted by municipal corporations or panchayats.

"In urban areas, the buffer is 50 meters from the FTL, while in rural areas it extends up to 250 meters," a revenue department official explained. "Post-2022 constructions face immediate action, while older structures must produce valid clearances from multiple agencies."

Two-Tier Action Plan Unveiled

Authorities have formulated a comprehensive strategy to address the Bada Talab FTL demarcation violations:

For post-March 2022 constructions: Automatic categorization as unauthorized, leading to immediate demolition proceedings

For pre-2022 structures: Owners must produce permissions from Municipal Corporation, Panchayat, Town and Country Planning, Environment Department, and Forest Department. Officials will investigate who granted these clearances.

Areas Under Scanner

The encroachment survey covered multiple villages including Sevania Gaud, Dharmpuri, Prempura, Aamkheda, Piplakhedi, Kotra Sultanabad, and Barkhedi Khurd. Specific findings include:

- 108 constructions in TT Nagar subdivision villages

- 3 houses near Khanugaon

- 7 houses in Halalpura

- 35 houses in Kohefiza

- Encroachments on 15 government land parcels in Khanugaon

Notably, officials marked red lines near the boundary wall of a college linked to MLA Arif Masood, as well as near bungalows of a minister and an IAS officer on VIP Road, indicating the crackdown extends across political and bureaucratic circles.

Demarcation Deadline Before Holi

District Collector Kaushalendra Vikram Singh has directed all Sub-Divisional Magistrates with jurisdiction around Upper Lake to complete demarcation before the Holi festival. The Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board has been tasked with identifying drains discharging sewage into the lake.

MP Alok Sharma, who raised objections regarding the encroachment three days ago, has advocated for a comprehensive master plan for the lake's protection.

A Decade of Surveys, Minimal Action

Despite three separate surveys over the past ten years—including a 2016 DGPS survey, an NGT-directed survey, and a recent Supreme Court-ordered survey—sustained action has remained elusive. Only one major eviction drive occurred in the last decade when 386 homes were removed from Bhadbhada slum settlement two years ago following NGT orders.

Environmental expert Rashid Noor emphasized the gravity of the situation: "Upper Lake is a Ramsar site of international importance. No construction should exist within 50 meters in urban limits. Yet permanent structures, farmhouses, and resorts have been built right up to FTL markers in Bhadbhada, Bisankhedi, Gauragaon, and Suraj Nagar."

Allegations of FTL Marker Manipulation

Complicating enforcement efforts are reports of irregularities in FTL boundary markers. Five different types of markers have been found along the lake's edges, with only one bearing the "BMC" inscription. Encroachments are reportedly concentrated around questionable markers, raising concerns of deliberate manipulation by land mafias.

As authorities race against time to complete demarcation before Holi, environmentalists hope this crackdown—unlike previous efforts—will translate into sustained on-ground enforcement protecting Bhopal's vital water heritage.