BAHAWALPUR: The city administration in an anti-encroachment drive cleared the vast commercial area of Satellite Town of illegal structures and holdings in an overnight operation. The campaign against encroachers was led by Bahawalpur City Assistant Commissioner (AC) Dr Sana Ramchand and Municipal Chief Officer Mian Azhar. Heavy machinery, including trucks, tractor-trolleys and cranes, removed and dismantled illegal structures and shops and managed to dislodge hundreds of vendors from the land that was encroached upon. After the operation, MC land, parks, service roads, shops’ front portions and greenbelts were restored. On the occasion, some of the unauthorised shopkeepers and illegal occupants attempted to interfere in the removal of illegal structures and stop the operation by issuing threats to the officials. However, the anti-encroachment operation continued for several hours. It may be recalled that that thousands of residents of Satellite Town, Bahawalpur have been demanding the authorities to launch the crackdown on the encroachers not only in commercial areas but also in the number of residential areas, particularly Block C near Wakeelwali Chakki, Bihari Colony and Hussaini Chowk, but the administration had been delaying it by asking the encroachers to demolish their structures themselves. PROTEST: A large number of the young doctors of the Bahawal Victoria Hospital (BVH) held a protest against the non-payment of their salaries for the previous two months. They gathered outside the outpatient department of the BVH and held a demonstration. The protesters raised slogans and demanded immediate payment of their salaries for previous months. They threatened to close down the OPD at the BVH and other hospitals across the province if their demands were not met. They also demanded the government to wind up the Punjab Health Foundation that, according to them, had failed to come to their expectation and resolve their basic problems.