Ahead of ‘Namaste Trump’, BJP-ruled Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) issued an eviction notice to 45 families from slums to vacate within 24 hours.
Ahmedabad| On Monday, Eviction notices were served to 45 families living in a slum near the newly built Motera stadium by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The stadium is being prepared to host US President Donald Trump and Prime minister Narendra Modi on February 24.
The families consisting of around 200 slum-dwellers who are registered construction workers claimed they have been asked to move out of a plot they have been inhabiting for two decades due to the upcoming “Namaste Trump” event.
However, AMC officials said the notices had no connection with the event.
Dated February 11, the eviction notice was declared only on Monday, setting Tuesday as the deadline for compliance, practically giving just 24 hours to the hundreds of slum dwellers to vacate the place, contradicting the original deadline set by the municipality officials
The notice says that the “encroached” piece of land belonged to the Ahmedabad civic body and was part of a town planning scheme.
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Most of the slum dwellers who had been living in the vicinity for decades do menial jobs for their survival.
One of them, a 35-year-old construction worker told the media, “The AMC officials who came to serve the notices asked us to vacate as soon as possible. They told us that the head of the United States is visiting Motera stadium and they wanted us to move out.”
The 45 families who were served notices by Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s Estate and Town Development Department are among around 65 families that live at a distance of about 1.5 kilometres from the Motera stadium on the road that connects the stadium with the Visat-Gandhinagar highway.
“Go wherever you want to, is what the officials said when we asked them about our fate. Every family has at least four members or more. Where will we all shift in such a short duration,” said Pankaj Damor (24) who has been driving vehicles on contract for the AMC.
Assistant TDO (Motera) at the Usmanpura office of AMC, Kishore Varna, who signed the notices said, “These slum-dwellers had encroached upon land under one of the town planning schemes and hence were served notices. There are some elements who are trying to take advantage of the event.”
A wall is also being constructed along the road connecting the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport to Indira Bridge, in order to cover the slum.
PM Narendra Modi will be hosting US President Donald Trump at an event at the stadium on February 23.
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