Juhu residents file PIL over mall

MUMBAI: Alleging violations in Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) regulations, local residents recently filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the developer of 1,260-seater multiplex-cum-mall constructed by Dynamix group at Juhu.

The residents claimed that the mall falls under CRZ-1 and the authorities had failed to take into account traffic congestion the mall would cause in an area where the road width does not exceed 36ft.

But spokespersons for developer Vinod Goenka and PVR Cinema, one of the 12 tenants against whom action has been sought in the petition, have denied the allegations.

Stating they are mere tenants, Chief Marketing Officer of PVR Cinema Gautam Dutta, who has yet to see a copy of the PIL, said, “Everything is done legally.’’ ‘’My land does not even fall under CRZ,’’ a senior management official of Dynamix Mall said.

“The national hydrographer has surveyed the property twice—once on behalf of the state government in 1999 and the second time when we decided to develop the property in 2002,’’ he added.

The issue arose in September 2005 when armed with information derived under Right to Information, the Juhu Citizens Welfare Group (JCWG) forwarded a list of 24 alleged violations to the BMC and the Mumbai police. Of the 28 objections, 18 were Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ) violations while the others were related to safety and traffic regulations.

The home department granted Delhi-based PVR Cinema a temporary licence for two of its five screens. But Adolf D’Souza of JCWG said, “We are objecting to the way permissions are given without any consideration to town planning.