District Magistrate of Central-North District S.S. regarding demolition action in Shalimar Bagh area of Delhi. Parihar has said that after the Supreme Court upheld the order of the Delhi High Court, the action to remove illegal constructions built within the designated right of way of Road No. 320 in Haiderpur area of Shalimar Bagh village was started from Sunday morning. The administration has made it clear that this action will continue until all the illegal structures located in the designated area are removed and land is made available for the road widening project.
District Magistrate (DM) of Central-North District S.S. Parihar said that this action is being taken in compliance with the orders of the court. The land in question is acquired government land, which is identified as a public road in the master plan of Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and is part of the prescribed right of way of Road No. 320. He said that this road is part of the important traffic corridor connecting Shalimar Bagh Railway Under Bridge (RUB) to the Outer Ring Road.
This route connects Ring Road, Azadpur, Shalimar Bagh and surrounding large residential, commercial and institutional areas. Through this, access to hospitals, government offices and developing administrative complexes is ensured. He said that the present width of the road has been seriously affected due to encroachments, leading to regular traffic jams and difficulty in movement of ambulances, fire vehicles and other emergency services.
Captured in July 1980
According to the DM, the acquisition of the concerned land was started through notifications of the years 1959 and 1961 for the planned development of Delhi. In the year 1966, a declaration for land acquisition was issued and in the year 1980, award numbers 40/1980-81 and 50/1980-81 were declared. The possession of the land was taken in July 1980 and the remaining compensation amount was also deposited in the year 1981. Thus, the process of land acquisition and compensation payment was completed more than four decades ago.
DM Parihar said that in the year 2025, scientific demarcation of land was done jointly by DDA, Revenue Department, Land and Building Department and Public Works Department using Total Station Method (TSM) technique. The joint survey conducted on January 10, 2026 found that a total of 143 unauthorized permanent structures existed within the prescribed 30 meter right of way.
Of these, about 19.5 meter area has existing road, while about 10.5 meter area is blocked due to encroachment. He said that the administration has adopted the principle of minimum intervention in the implementation of the project. Although the sanctioned right of way is 30 metres, action is being taken only in the required 10.5 meter area at the present stage, so that maximum number of structures can be saved and a balance can be struck between public interest and minimum displacement.
Notice issued to invite objections
DM informed that objections were invited from the affected persons by issuing a public notice in January 2026. Notices were also published in leading newspapers. After considering all the objections, the order was passed by the Land Acquisition Collector on March 20, 2026.
He said that after this, some residents filed a petition in the Delhi High Court and tried to declare the land acquisition terminated under Section 24(2) of the 2013 Act and challenge the administrative action. The government presented records before the court that the acquisition of the land has been legally completed, compensation has been deposited and possession has also been taken.
Delhi High Court order kept intact
DM said that on April 6, 2026, Delhi High Court rejected the petition saying that the petitioners do not have valid documents of pre-acquisition ownership, the acquisition of land is valid and the road project of public importance cannot be stopped. After this, the review petition was also rejected on 18 May 2026.
He said that after this the petitioners filed a special leave petition in the Supreme Court. The case was heard in the Honorable Supreme Court on 29 May 2026 and the Court rejected the special leave petition and upheld the order of the Delhi High Court. With this, the administration’s side received final judicial approval.
DM S.S. Parihar said that the Delhi government, adopting a humanitarian approach, has also announced a special assistance package for the affected eligible families. Under this, a lump sum ex-gratia assistance of Rs 3 lakh will be provided to each eligible family or unit. Apart from this, families who do not have any alternative accommodation available in Delhi, will be provided license based temporary accommodation facility for 11 months in the residential units located at Savda Ghevra.
What is the objective of administration?
He said that on one hand the objective of the administration is to ensure complete compliance with the court orders, while on the other hand it is also to provide as much assistance as possible to the affected families. He said that the widening of Road No. 320 is an important public infrastructure project of the capital, the completion of which will improve the traffic system, easy movement of emergency services and provide better transportation facilities to millions of people of the area.
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