Civic officials had to return without demolishing 1,388 slums near the Tansa main water pipeline on Saturday
Slum dwellers residing near airport land in Kurla, and those living alongside the Tansa main water pipeline in Vidyavihar are locked in a tussle over tenements to be provided to project affected persons (PAPs) at HDIL Premier compound at Kamani, Kurla.
The tussle has also pitted state Housing Minister Prakash Mehta and Congress MLA Naseem Khan against each other, as they have been pushing for allotment of the PAP tenements to their own sides.
In fact, Mehta has vowed that he will not wear footwear until the Vidyavihar slum dwellers are rehabilitated at the Kamani, Kurla site. He claims he will continue to fight for them and will never settle for the PAP tenements offered to the slum dwellers in Mahul.
Meanwhile, Congress MLA Arif Naseem Khan wants his voters to get rehabilitated at the same site in Kurla. Khan has been fighting for the slum dwellers on airport land in Kurla, his constitituency, for the past three years.
"The Kurla PAP project was started with an aim to rehabilitate the slums near the airport. But for the last three years, State Government and MMRDA have been dilly-dallying on the matter. Three surveys and reverification have been conducted, but the annexures still have not been prepared. This will only delay the airport expansion plans, as the slums which have come up near to the runways are posing a threat to the airport", said Arif Naseem Khan. Khan also alleged, "It is unfair to the airport slum dwellers if the Minister uses his chair for vote-bank politics."
On Saturday morning, civic officials from N ward led by Bhagyashree Kapse, Assistant Commissioner had to return empty-handed without demolishing 1,388 slums, as planned, near the Tansa main water pipeline.
Residents had protested against the demolition as they are not ready to accept the PAP tenements offered to them in Mahul. Instead, the slum dwellers are demanding rehabilitation in Kurla.
Housing Minister Prakash Mehta has extended support to residents of slums and did not allow the civic staff to carry out the demolition on Saturday. This is the second time ward staff returned without carrying out the demolition.
Demolition data
The demolition of slums alongside the Tansa main water pipeline in Vidyavihar was ordered by the Bombay High Court
Earlier, the N ward had planned the demolition on March 24, but were not allowed to carry out action by the slum dwellers
This month, the slum dwellers and they were intimated well in advance that the demolition would be carried out on April 15, 16, and 17
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