New Delhi, Jul 16 (IANS): After Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath at a meeting with his officials decided against the demolition of houses in the floodplain zone of Kukrail River, a wave of joy swept through the ‘vulnerable’ localities of Pantnagar, Indraprastha Nagar, Rahim Nagar and more such areas.

The residents of these localities feared Akbar Nagar-like demolition after a survey and red-marking of their houses.

The Chief Minister emphasised on Tuesday that the state government is committed to the safety of all its residents, adding that those behind putting red marks on the houses will be put on notice.

The residents of these localities expressed their happiness over the development and thanked the Yogi government for extending the favour to them.

Shakeel Ahmed, a resident of Pantnagar, told IANS, “All of us got so excited after hearing the government's decision that we raised slogans for CM Adityanath. All the residents in the locality built the houses with their life savings and were living in constant fear of losing them. Today, we are very thankful to the Yogi Adityanath government for taking the right decision and allaying our fears."

Ahmed Khan, another Pantnagar resident, said he is highly relieved now as he extended his gratitude to the UP government.

"We built our houses with our life savings. Getting to know that our houses would be demolished was a dreadful moment and we were living in constant fear of losing our paradise. We are thankful to the Yogi government for making the right decision,” he told IANS.

Saira Bano, a resident of Lucknow, told IANS that her happiness knows no bounds.

“Had we lost our houses, we would have been dead. My husband is a heart patient. We can’t build another house,” she said.

She also differed with the notion that the Muslim community is prone to unequal and sub-par treatment under the current regime and said that if such bias existed, they wouldn’t have gotten such relief.

Urmesh, another UP resident whose house was marked for demolition, said that she is overjoyed over the development.

“Middle-class people like us would have been forced to live on streets had the demolition occurred,” she told IANS while thanking the state administration for reviewing its decision.

According to reports, the government had earlier decided to establish a 50-metre buffer zone on either side of the river, as against the existing 35-metre, which in turn would have resulted in the demolition of many houses along the river coast.