NEW DELHI: In what could temporarily halt industry-related work, the offices of the broadcast regulator were sealed by the Delhi authorities under a drive against illegal construction in the Capital.

According to a TV news channel, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (Trai) headquarters were sealed today for being in violation of building bylaws and having an office on Africa Avenue, which is predominantly a residential area. Under heavy police protection, the sealing team came to the Trai office and asked the employees to leave.

The sealings against commercial establishments in residential areas of Delhi resumed this morning with officials of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) descending upon an upmarket mall in South Delhi as part of a Supreme Court-mandated clean-up drive.

MCD officials, backed by a contingent of Delhi Police personnel, started the drive by sealing CTC Mall in Maharani Bagh near Ashram. They then sealed two other properties in nearby areas, a report by United News of India stated.
There were no reports of any resistance from anywhere today, though traders have held the city to ransom through protests over the last fortnight.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee had said sealing would start from Wednesday.

Earlier, the apex court had directed the committee to restart sealing and prepare a schedule after consultation with the authorities after the Central government failed to come out with a clear-cut policy on commercial activities in residential areas.