Mumbai: MHADA allots 300 new houses to Mahul residents

Mumbai

A day after Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis initiated dialogue and action on relocation of project affected persons (PAPs) from Mahul, the Maharashtra Housing and Development Authority (MHADA) allotted 300 houses to some of the residents currently protesting against forced habitation in a neighbourhood dominated by chemical factories.

A week ago, MHADA had promised handover of some of the 433 unused transit homes in Gorai, Borivali and Dharavi.

On December 22, Mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar, MHADA President Uday Samant, MLA Mangesh Kudalkar and BJP State Secretary Sanjay Pandey visited the protesters at Azad Maidan. Samant assured them that MHADA will soon hand over the promised tenements. “We have 433 unused transit homes. Some of these have been reserved for emergencies. We have already written to the BMC about the transfer,” he said.

On assurances from Pandey, the protesters are moving back to their original site of movement in Vidyavihar, where they had been camping for close to two months before coming to Azad Maidan.

MHADA credited Yuva Sena Chief Aaditya Thackerary for the idea. The PAPs had ameeting with Thackeray last month and had apprised him of their living conditions. “He who got in touch with us and asked us to provide help, and we followed through,” said Samant.

In the meantime, the protesting PAPs gave the BMC a 15-day ultimatum to expedite measures, failing which they will intensify the protest. “We are afraid that the formation of a four-member committee by the CM to relocate us is just something the government is doing to show its concern about the people because public support for our movement has increased. The committee being headed by the BMC Commissioner is not ideal as the civic body has not followed the HC orders of August 2018,” said Bilal Khan of NGO Ghar Bachao, Ghar Banao Andolan that has been supporting the resident’s movement.