A principal in the US, co-owner of a high-value property valued by the market at 23 Crores, contacted me. His relative's update via text was simply "all secure." He was looking at a new satellite image and felt something was wrong, but he couldn't be sure from 8,000 miles away. He engaged me for an immediate stewardship brief.
I visited the site. I documented that the main security gate and a section of the compound wall were gone. A new gravel road had been cut directly across the center of the plot. In the back corner, I observed a blue tent, a commercial water tanker, and signs of an active settlement. I also photographed a final Panchayat notice nailed to a tree, regarding 'unauthorized encroachment,' with a response deadline that had already passed. I sent this brief, with 12 time-stamped photographs, to the principal.
He understood that "all secure" was a reassurance, not a fact.