108 sawmills are located between Barkhedi Phatak and Bharat Talkies on the under-construction metro route. The administration has ordered their relocation within a month to an alternative site near Airport Road, which has already been proposed.

For nearly 50 years, there have been discussions about relocating these sawmills outside the city but a final decision was delayed due to difficulties in identifying a suitable location.

The land is now part of the developing metro route, and various media reports have labeled it as encroachment. However, sawmill owners argue that part of it belongs to Auqaf-e-Shahi, and some of the land is privately owned.

The Metro administration has already paid Rs 5.5 crore to the district administration for the relocation. Despite this, the relocation hasn't happened yet, prompting the collector to set a strict one-month deadline.

Collector Kaushalendra Vikram Singh has criticized the SDM for the lack of planning and has instructed that all encroachments, including sawmills and a cemetery, be cleared within the one-month timeframe.

In September 2023, the administration issued the first and only notice to the sawmill owners, ordering them to vacate.

After 48 years of failed efforts, a nodal agency will now be formed to oversee the relocation. This agency will submit daily progress reports and ensure that the sawmill relocation is completed within a month.

The nodal agency will likely include officials from the metro, district administration, and the industry department. The current route is from Subhash Nagar to Bhopal Station and the sawmills are situated in between. The route needs to be cleared for the metro project.

The administration will first try to resolve disputes through dialogue with encroachers. If this fails, legal action will follow, with a one-month timeline for clearing the land.

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