The Western Railway on Tuesday launched a massive anti-encroachment drive, clearing nearly 18 per cent of 500 illegal huts near Bandra railway station following directions from the Bombay High Court.
Chief Public Relations Officer Vineet Abhishek told PTI that the five-day drive aims to free 5,300 square metres of land to clear the railway safety zone and facilitate future capacity augmentation projects.
The drive will continue till May 23, he said.
He further said that the railway has planned an integrated complex comprising elevated roads, multi-storey buildings, platforms, and maintenance facilities at Bandra Terminus, one of the biggest railway stations in Mumbai.
"Of the approximately 500 huts to be demolished on the railway land at Garib Nagar, we have cleared around 15 to 18 per cent on the first day of the anti-encroachment drive," the official said.
According to the Western Railway, the drive was being carried out jointly with the civil administration, police authorities, and railway security agencies to ensure law and order and the humane execution of the drive.
In a statement issued earlier in the day, Western Railway said proceedings under the Public Premises Act in the matter were initiated before 2017, and eviction orders were passed on November 27, 2017.
"The issue has undergone extensive judicial scrutiny over nearly nine years, including proceedings before the Hon'ble Bombay High Court and the Hon'ble Supreme Court," the statement read.
According to railway authorities, the latest orders of the Bombay High Court dated April 29, 2026, subsequently upheld in further proceedings and before the Supreme Court of India, permitted the removal of unauthorised encroachments while protecting identified eligible structures.
The Western Railway said it was fully complying with judicial directions, and that structures identified for protection through the joint survey process were not being disturbed.
It further said railway land cannot remain perpetually encroached upon, especially in safety-sensitive operational areas, while asserting that the administration was acting strictly within the framework of the law and court directions.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
