Land grab: Deputy Mayors wife served notice

VELLORE: Revenue Department officials have served a notice to 18 encroachers of government land, one among them being Vellore Corporation Deputy Mayor’s wife. Following the Chief Minister’s order, the Revenue Department is taking efforts to vacate the encroached government land.Accordingly, the officials  on Wednesday visited  Govindharaj Nagar in Bagayam at Arni Road, where Raji Chettikulam pond is located. They found that the pond has been encroached upon and only a little space has been left for the pond.They immediately served notice to 18 persons to vacate their residences by Saturday. Interestingly, one among the encroachers is Vellore Corporation Deputy Mayor Dharmalingam’s wife Parameswari, on whose name a building has been raised in the area.When contacted, Dharmalingam said, “We have been using the land for the past 15 years. But we will obey the Government’s order and are ready to give the space to the Government”.Residents said, they were staying there for decades and complained that they had paid for electricity and water tax till now and have been taking steps to get pattas for their houses. “Serving notice to vacate our houses has shocked us,” they said.