Bhubaneswar, Oct. 31: The state government has taken steps to remove encroachment by a real estate developer on Gangua nullah near Samantarapur on the outskirts of the city.

A real-estate developer was constructing a bridge on the nullah at a plot near NH-203. The builder had begun the construction work allegedly without official permission and had even laid an approach road, partially blocking the nullah and hindering the flow of water in the process.

However, the water resources department has stopped work at the site and even asked the executive engineer concerned to trace all the important documents that were issued while granting permission to the project.

Gangua is the meeting point of 10 natural drainage channels of the city. The illegal construction not only created apprehension of floods, there was also a chance of NH-203, or the Bhubaneswar-Puri National Highway, getting affected, as the link road the builder had built might have posed a threat to the highway.

Sources in the water resources department said the documents shown by the real-estate developer seem to be “fabricated” as they were issued in the ’90s. The authorities are in the process of tracing the details of the file to find out under what conditions permission was granted.

Suresh Chandra Mohapatra, commissioner-cum-secretary of the water resources department, said: “With the help of the Khurda district administration, the department has stopped the work at the site where the builder was building a link road with NH-203 to his plot where the Gangua nullah makes a U-turn.”

“The executive engineer concerned has been asked to trace the files containing documents related to granting of no-objection certificate, engineering plans and approval. However, as an immediate measure, the road connecting NH-203 and the concrete structure will be removed as it is directly blocking the flow of water in the nullah. It is posing a flood threat to the neighbouring areas on both sides of the water body,” said Mohapatra.

Sources said that the demolition would be video-graphed by the water resources department so that even if the builder goes to court claiming compensation, there would be proof with the state government regarding the perception of threat from the illegal structure.

“The structure violates the Orissa Development Authority Act, 1982, and the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010, as it is being constructed near a historical site, namely Sisupalgarh,” added a source. However, the blocking of Gangua nullah by a real estate developer once again exposed the lack of a centralised decision-making authority in the city administration.

Work on the illegal bridge and road had been going on for the past several months, but with multiple departments involved in monitoring the development, nobody could take immediate action.

Sources said, local MLA Ashok Panda had informed the authorities two months ago when the construction process started allegedly without official permission. Authorities of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority claimed they had informed the water resources department long ago, but no action was taken.

Panda, however, said: “The chief minister was apprised of the situation on Saturday and all the departments concerned are likely to take action as the illegal structure is going to pose a threat of flood to a major part of the city. Floods in the Mahanadi river system in September have already made life difficult for people staying in low-lying areas, so this new threat will be an additional burden on the city administration.”