NEW DELHI: Over 206 hectares of Northern Railway's land is under encroachment, the Lok Sabha was informed today.
Total 206.37 hectares of land is under encroachment in Northern Railway including Jammu and Kashmir as on March this year, Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain said in a written reply.
Most of the encroachments on railway land are in the approaches of stations in metros and big cities in the form of slums, he said.
At certain locations, these encroachments cause bottlenecks and safety hazard in train operations and difficulties in maintenance which at times affect the line capacity ultimately affecting the revenue of railways.
For these encroachments, railways carry out regular surveys and take action for their removal.
If the encroachments are of a temporary nature, in the shape of jhuggis and squatters, the same are removed in consultation and with the assistance of RPF and local civic authorities.
However, for old encroachments, where party is not amenable to persuasion, action is taken under Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971 as amended from time to time and evictionis carried out with the assistance of state government and police.