Exasperated by the mountainous debris from the Metro-1 construction work lying unattended on roads, Andheri (East) residents have written a stern letter to the MMRDA, the BMC and industrialist Anil Ambani, whose company Reliance Infrastructure has been executing the project.
In the letter, the residents have threatened to carry and dump the debris in front of the entrances to the MMRDA and BMC offices as well as Ambani’s residence if they fail to remove the dirt from the roads in the next two days.
The residents alleged that the authorities concerned have turned a blind eye to the problem despite several complaints. “The debris near JB Nagar has narrowed the road, causing inconvenience to the citizens during peak hours,” said Rajesh Pandya, a resident and member of Advanced Locality Management.
Even the road near Chakala church has turned into a stretch of hell, thanks to the leaking pipeline and unattended Metro debris. Water from the pipeline washes the debris onto the road, plastering a considerable stretch with mud. This problem has been plaguing the area for the last one month and nothing has been done about it.
“We informed the ward officials and the storm water department visited the spot only to return, saying that it was a problem of the water supply department. They even did not bother to inform the department concerned,” complained Brian Pereira, another resident.
Fed up with the problem, the residents decided to send the letter to the authorities. “We want the debris to be removed at the earliest as it has become a major problem for vehicular traffic. We have already sent the letter to these authorities on Wednesday and waiting for their response,” said Godfrey Pimenta, a resident who initiated the move along with other members to teach the authorities a lesson.
Vishwas Shankarwar, Assistant Commissioner of Andheri K/East ward, said, “We have resolved the water pipeline leakage issue on Thursday morning. However, removing the debris is not our responsibility.”
Despite repeated calls and messages, MMRDA officials remained unavailable for comment.
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