NOIDA: The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) successfully reclaimed nearly 300 acres of land, valued at Rs 1,200 crore, from illegal occupation during a significant demolition and anti-encroachment operation in Aligarh district on Tuesday.
The operation involved the dismantling of several unauthorized colonies, such as The Grand Coloniser and Vrindavan Colony, where demolition crews used excavators to destroy boundary walls, internal roads, and makeshift structures across multiple sites.
Conducted in collaboration with the Aligarh district administration and police, the operation spanned Tappal, Hamidpur, and Syarol villages, all part of YEIDA’s designated area. Officials indicated that these settlements were established without any official sanction or land-use permission.
Officials from YEIDA noted a rising trend of “illegal colonization” near the anticipated Noida International Airport.
YEIDA OSD Shailendra Kumar Singh, who supervised the drive, emphasized, “The Authority will maintain strict measures against encroachers and unauthorized developers. Legal action will be initiated against all involved in land fraud, and potential buyers are advised against purchasing from unapproved developers.”
This demolition effort in Aligarh follows a significant operation in Bulandshahr on September 16, which came immediately after a report by TOI highlighted fraudulent land-sale practices in the region. During that operation, YEIDA reclaimed 155 acres valued at approximately Rs 2,500 crore, demolishing illegal colonies like Aeronest Coloniser in Jhajhar and Shri Radha Gauri Enclave in Kakod.
Illegal real estate schemes are increasingly prevalent in areas governed by YEIDA, particularly around Jewar and neighboring districts such as Bulandshahr and Aligarh. Unsuspecting homebuyers from Delhi-NCR are often targeted with offers of plots in fraudulent “airport townships.”
These prospective investors are frequently lured with free weekend rides to these sites, which are equipped with partially constructed roads, fake signage, and boundary walls to lend an air of legitimacy. A TOI investigation published on September 15, titled ‘Khosla ka Ghosla, by invite: With car pickups & fake maps, land sharks net ‘airport investors’, detailed how agents deceive buyers with altered maps, glossy brochures, and booking schemes starting as low as Rs 11,000, enticing them to purchase plots lacking both RERA registration and YEIDA approval.
On October 8, CEO Rakesh Kumar Singh issued an explicit directive to all deputy collectors and officers to conduct raids and legal action against these deceptive developers. The order mandates filing FIRs against those constructing unauthorized colonies and requires that action reports be submitted to Authority headquarters.
Singh warned that any lapse in enforcement would be considered a failure to fulfill duties.
In the last three years, YEIDA has conducted over 25 major anti-encroachment operations, reclaiming land worth more than Rs 6,000 crore.
This year alone, the Authority has liberated hundreds of acres of government land in Aligarh and Bulandshahr and has issued notices to over 300 suspected colonizers in Aligarh, Mathura, Jewar, and Jahangirpur.
