Officer Supervising Demolition In Himachal Shot Dead By Hotel Owner

Shimla:

A government officer was shot dead on Tuesday by the owner of a guesthouse in Himachal Pradesh's Solan district when she was overseeing the demolition of an illegal structure, the police said. One of the labourers who came with the officer was also hit by a bullet.

Assistant town and country planner Shail Bala was part of a team of civic officers which was tasked by a court with razing illegal structures in 13 hotels and resorts in the town, 60 km from capital Shimla. The administration had found the structures unsafe for tourists.

Himachal Pradesh sees a high number of tourists during the summer months.

While the officers were approaching the gate of Narayani Guest House at Solan's Dharampur, owner Vijay Singh allegedly fired shots in the air to scare off the labourers.
 

A bullet hit Shail Bala, killing her on the spot, a police officer said. A labourer, Gulab Singh, was also hit in his abdomen. Another bullet whizzed past the sub-divisional officer of the electricity department, Sanjya Negi.

The guest house owner then fled from the house. The police have announced a reward of Rs.1 lakh for anyone who gives information about him.

The officers were acting on the Supreme Court's April 17 directions to demolish illegal structures, the police said. The court had said hotels that build illegal and unsafe structures just to make some extra money should be punished.

Infrastructure experts have been warning for long that adding new structures on weak foundation, especially in hilly areas, is dangerous during floods and landslides.

However, civic officials say it is difficult to monitor all illegal structures in tourist hotspots in the hill state as the hotel and guest house owners add new structures hidden from plain view.

With inputs from agencies