Bhubaneswar: Continuing its crackdown on illegal encroachments across the Odisha capital, the Enforcement Wing of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) on Thursday carried out a major eviction drive in Shampur area of the city and reclaimed nearly two acres of government land.

The operation was conducted under the direction of BDA Vice-Chairman Chanchal Rana and supervised by Joint Commissioner Ranjan Kumar Jena. The drive forms part of the authority's ongoing initiative to free government land from unauthorized occupation and pave the way for planned urban development and public infrastructure projects.

On the first day of the operation, enforcement teams demolished 38 ACC houses, four RCC houses under construction, 15 bathrooms, one under-construction iron shed, and approximately 100 feet of boundary wall that had been illegally built on government land. Heavy machinery was deployed to remove the encroachments while police personnel remained present to maintain law and order throughout the operation.

Officials said the eviction was carried out only after following due legal procedures. Before launching the drive, the BDA had issued eviction notices to the encroachers and repeatedly made public announcements through loudspeakers, urging them to vacate the land voluntarily. The authority maintained that sufficient time had been provided for occupants to remove their belongings before enforcement action was initiated.

The BDA Vice-Chairman said the authority would continue its anti-encroachment drive until all illegal occupations on government land are removed. He appealed to residents occupying government land without authorization to vacate voluntarily and cooperate with the administration, emphasizing that reclaiming public land is essential for planned urban growth and the implementation of future development projects in Bhubaneswar.