Srinagar, Dec 1: Amid apprehensions, the officials at Srinagar Development Authority (SDA) on Monday said that the organisation was only verifying the occupants of shops allotted in SDA complexes over the past many years.
Talking to Greater Kashmir, VC SDA Muhammad Rafi denied any plans to demolish shops or buildings, saying that the SDA was only verifying the occupants who were actually allotted shops in SDA buildings.
“I don’t know who is spreading this baseless news. Why would SDA demolish the shops or buildings? These are our own structures, why would we demolish these structures?” Rafi told Greater Kashmir. He said SDA was only doing the verification of occupants as there were complaints that people who were allotted shops have now illegally sold them to other people without taking prior permission from SDA.
“We are only verifying that the persons who were allotted the shops are still running them. We have received complaints that some occupants have sold these shops to other persons illegally,” he said.
VC SDA told Greater Kashmir that people allotted any shops are not allowed to make any alterations without seeking permission. But some occupants have raised another storey of the shops without taking proper permission from the SDA,” he said. Muhammad Rafi said some people are not even paying the rent on time.
“So we are only verifying the credentials of those who are presently occupying these shops. But we have no plans at all to carry any demolition drive,” he said.
He said the shopkeepers have been served the notices for making illegal alterations.
“If anyone was allotted a shop of a particular dimension, they have now modified it without seeking permission,” he said.
He said that there was no proposal or plan for carrying out any demolition. “People are unnecessarily relating it with the Jammu incident and want to sensationalise it,” he told Greater Kashmir.
