KOCHI: Illegal encroachers and vehicle parkers beware! The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is all set to go on a drive to remove illegal encroachments on the Aroor-Vyttila. As on 26 July, 2011, the NHAI sent 110 notices to encroachments on the Edappally-Vyttila stretch of the NH-47 bypass alone. Out of this only 29 have been removed as of the above mentioned date. Some of the encroachers include popular commercial establishments and even universities.To ascertain the latest status of the encroachments, the NHAI will employ an engineer who will survey the 16 km stretch of the bypass on either side. This will be followed by a drive by the NHAI team with the help of police and other concerned bodies. Illegal parking slots, construction materials, wayside hotels etc are the major contributors to the encroachments. “There is very little awareness on encroachments. A number of people do not know that when they park their car on the road to go to a shop, it constitutes encroachment. Parking on the road is taken as a matter of right by people. Even when there are paid parking provided by shopping malls, people often refuse to use it and park their vehicles on the roads outside. At the same time, several commercial establishments lack proper parking slots,” the CT Abraham, Project Director, NHAI Cochin. The director also pointed out that NHAI faces several constraints as far as taking action against illegal encroachments on its roads are concerned. “The NHAI can only send notices to the police. It is upto the police to take the action. Another constraint is that a lot of government land in and around roads does not have clear demarcations. Hence it is not possible for us to ascertain whether the land is encroached or not in the first place,” the NHAI Project Director said.
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