Demolition in Laxmi Nagar after Jungleeshwar: Railways start breaking 350 barriers; Two incidents of fire in the midst of police deployment; The woman said, "Where to take the children?"

The campaign to remove illegal encroachments has gained momentum in Rajkot city for some time now. After the successful completion of the demolition work in Jungleeshwar by the Municipal Corporation, the railway administration and the local police are now jointly focusing on the Laxmi Nagar area. A convoy of bulldozers was dispatched with tight security to remove the pressures that had accumulated over the years on the railway-owned land since early Monday morning. Around 350 kutcha huts will be razed down. However, the dissolution carried out by the railway system has made the condition of poor families worse for years. "We have been living here for 60 years, our parents passed away here and now where will we go with these small children?" the locals said with tears in their eyes. At the time of elections, everyone rushes to get 500-1000 votes, but today when the roof is being snatched from our heads, no one is ready to support us. Used as a vote bank, but no one in trouble: Residents The atmosphere had become gloomy and tense during the demolition operation. Expressing her anguish, a woman named Shantiben said, "We have been living here for years but never got electricity or water facilities, yet we used to make our living here. Now that the demolition has taken place, we are on the streets. Leaders come only to get votes, no one cares to give the poor a place to live. We were hoping that he would arrange for us to stay somewhere: Shambhuben Shambhuben said her family has been living here for more than 50 years. They are not educated and earn their livelihood by selling vegetables. They alleged that the notice was earlier issued by the railway administration but they were hopeful that accommodation would be arranged somewhere. The authorities were constantly pressuring us to load the luggage, but the question is, where to carry so much luggage? The condition of small children and the elderly has become deplorable in this area with a population of more than 5000 people. Fire incidents and tight police deployment during demolition During this mega operation, an atmosphere of chaos was created when the demolition work was going on and suddenly fire incidents took place at three different places. Operations were disrupted for some time as the huts caught fire. However, the fire brigade team deployed at the spot immediately took over the front and brought the fire under control. Fortunately, there were no casualties in the fire, but there was extensive damage to the goods. Nothing happened to the enforcers against the tight police vigilance An impenetrable fortress was set up by the police to ensure that the entire operation was carried out peacefully. A large convoy including top police officers was deployed to ensure that the law and order situation did not deteriorate. There were sporadic voices of protest on this occasion, but the pressure makers did nothing against the tight police guard. I had to go through the process of people removing their belongings on their own. And reluctantly cooperated to carry out the demolition. Ground cleared for upcoming Railway projects According to the railway administration, this land of Laxmi Nagar is very important from the point of view of safety and development projects of the railways. The pressures near the tracks are proving to be dangerous for train operations and passenger safety. The administration has given a clear indication that similar strict action will be taken in other areas of the city in the coming days where there are pressures on railway land. At present, these 350 families of Laxmi Nagar have come under the open sky. The only demand of the residents is that the government or the railway system should provide them with alternative accommodation so that they can stay safe with their young children.