Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], April 28 (ANI): The Uttar Pradesh government has recently carried out an encroachment removal campaign in several districts along the India-Nepal border in the state, taking action against more than 250 illegal constructions, as per an official statement.

According to the statement, the drive targeted unauthorised constructions and religious institutions and focused on areas within a 10-15 km radius of the border.

Action was taken against 89 illegal encroachers in Bahraich and 119 illegal constructions in Shravasti.

Additionally, 17 unauthorised madrasas were identified and addressed in the process.

In Siddharthnagar district, 11 illegal structures were removed, while in Maharajganj, action was taken against 19 encroachments. Meanwhile, in Balrampur, seven encroachments on government land were identified; two were removed voluntarily, and action is ongoing against the remaining five, the government said.

Earlier this month, Uttar Pradesh Minister of state for minority welfare, Muslim Waqf and Haj Danish Azad Ansari stressed the need to end alleged land encroachment, noting that the Waqf Amendment Bill was the need of the hour.

Earlier in January, Uttar Pradesh Police launched an anti-encroachment drive to remove illegal settlements on the land belonging to the Army in the Vijaynagar area in Ghaziabad.

DCP City Rajesh Kumar Singh said the anti-encroachment drive will continue until all illegal settlements are removed from the area.

'In the Vijaynagar area, many people have encroached upon the land which belongs to the Army. We received a letter from the officials (of the Army) to remove the encroachment, and hence we began the anti-encroachment drive - it will continue till all the illegal settlements are removed from the area...,' Singh told ANI.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh police, along with the administration, demolished an illegal construction belonging to a notorious criminal in the limits of the Hathgaon police station area in Fatehpur in March.

According to officials, the construction was made 'illegally' on government land.

Fatehpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Dhawal Jaiswal said that the illegal construction belonged to a criminal who has more than 12 cases registered against him. (ANI)