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BMC, Dino Morea at loggerheads over his open-air gyms

Replying to BMC's notice, Morea said the gymnasium was very popular and the BMC should "re-consider" its decision.

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File photo of Dino Morea (L), Hrithik Roshan (C) and Yuva Sena chief Aditya Thackeray (R) at the inauguration of Morea’s DM Fitness studio in Matunga
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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and actor Dino Morea, whose two open-air gymnasiums at Marine Drive were inaugurated by Yuva Sena chief Aditya Thackeray, are heading for a showdown.

Morea's company DM Fitness had installed the gyms at the spot. dna had first reported on November 17 that the Bombay High Court (HC)-appointed panel had rejected permission for the gyms to operate. The BMC had then asked Morea to remove the gyms by next month. Instead of removing the gymnasiums, Morea has asked the civic body for an extension and even sought permission to operate more such gyms.

Replying to BMC's notice, Morea said the gymnasium was very popular and the BMC should "re-consider" its decision. The BMC had, last month, issued a notice to Morea, asking him to remove the gymnasiums by January 31 from the iconic sea-facing promenade to an open space in the vicinity.

"I am going to follow all the rules. But the gyms are very popular, and many people use them. It is something that people want. I have sought an extension from the BMC and, in fact, looking at their popularity, I want to install more such gyms along Marine Drive. If the permission is rejected, only then will I remove the existing gyms," Morea told dna.

Meanwhile, the BMC had said in its letter, "It was unanimously decided by the three-member committee that the openness and exclusive ambience of Marine Drive, which is a unique landmark of the city, should be maintained and no new intervention should be allowed. The committee has directed that the fitness stations be re-located outside the Marine Drive precinct area. The BMC will be constrained to remove it on February 1, if no action is taken by you."

The civic body, on its part, has suggested that the gyms be moved to either the Cooperage Grounds or Bhatia Garden, where they would not obstruct anyone. To this, Morea said, "The BMC is talking about heritage but several changes have been made to the promenade already. Why was heritage not applicable then? We have not even broken any tiles. It is just a placement; no construction was involved at all. The BMC should tell us that the gyms are not popular and then we will remove them. They are a high utility innovation and must be promoted instead of being removed," Morea said.

Inaugurated in July by Thackeray, Morea and actor Jacqueline Fernandes, the open-air, open-to-all gymnasium was an ensemble of multiple fitness equipment. Following a controversy over its installation, the BMC had given just a three-month permission to set up the facility on an "experimental" basis.

Just a day after its inauguration, the BMC dismantled one of the two gymnasiums, citing lack of permissions. Under pressure from the Shiv Sena, however, hours later, the civic body was forced to re-install it.

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