Key Highlights of the Report:

• Anti-encroachment drive conducted by the municipality and traffic police at Damoh’s Ghantaghar area.
• Livelihoods of poor Kumbhkar (Prajapati) families, selling earthen pots for generations, face a severe crisis.
• Influential merchants allegedly received prior tip-offs, successfully saving their goods.
• Citizens demand transparent, unbiased, and uniform action against all encroachers.

Poor Bear the Brunt, Livelihoods Snatched

The heaviest toll of this discriminatory action was borne by the Kumbhkar (Prajapati) community. These families have been earning their daily bread by selling earthen pots on the roadside for generations. Without any solid prior notice, the administration dismantled their carts and destroyed their goods. This sudden crackdown has created a severe livelihood crisis for these daily wage earners. It has become a common talking point in the city whether the whip of the law is reserved only for the weak and marginalized.

Administration Silent on Encroachments by Large Establishments

Questioning the administration’s impartiality, local citizens pointed out that several prominent shopkeepers in and around the Ghantaghar area have permanently occupied public corridors and pathways. Illegal tin sheds and concrete structures have been erected in multiple spots, yet the administration’s bulldozers failed to muster the courage to reach those areas.

Eyewitnesses allege that wealthy and influential traders were tipped off about the drive well in advance. Capitalizing on this, they secured their valuable goods in time. Although a cosmetic shift in the officials’ attitude was noticed once media coverage began at the spot, the poor vendors had already suffered massive financial losses by then.

Growing Demand for Transparent Action

Following this entire episode, city residents have strongly demanded from the district administration that double standards should not be adopted in anti-encroachment operations. The public asserts that everyone is equal before the law, and therefore, the action must be completely transparent. Instead of solely targeting the city’s poorest, the bulldozers should also dismantle the concrete encroachments built by the influential on public properties.

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