The demolished structure of a shrine near Master Canteen Square in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Ashwinee Pati

Bhubaneswar, June 7: Officials of the municipal corporation, development authority and the general administration department today conducted an eviction drive to facilitate expansion and modernisation of the railway station in the city.

Amid stiff resistance from squatters, three religious structures and more than 100 kiosks were demolished today.

Moreover, the agencies demolished a number of eateries, fruit kiosks and illegal parking lots that had come up on government land. They took help of police and the Odisha Special Striking Force to conduct the drive.

The joint team faced resistance while demolishing three temples as hundreds of people halted the drive for nearly half an hour. The team could go ahead with the drive only after the police intervened.

Bhubaneswar Development Authority enforcement officer Deba Prasad Dash said a number of illegal structures built on government land were razed. “We will take stringent action against all the squatters,” he said.

Though the joint team has been conducting similar drives lately, the squatters, especially vendors, reappear every time around the station area. Pedestrians could not use the pavements because of encroachment. Besides, the station area also got waterlogged after a spell of shower because of large-scale encroachment, said a civic official.

Residents complain that the area has become a criminals’ den with some of the illegal kiosks selling ganja.

“Thousands of passengers depend on the railway station everyday, and such encroachment makes their life difficult,” said Ajay Naik, a commuter.