Urban development dept allowed Adarsh scam

The minutes of a crucial meeting held at the Union environment ministry just before the issue of the show cause notice to Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society in Colaba point to the key role played by the Maharashtra urban development department in allowing the scam to take place.

At the meeting, held on November 11 in Delhi between state government officials and the environment ministry, Maharashtra revenue secretary SJ Kunte pointed fingers at a deputy secretary in the state urban development department.

According to the minutes, the state urban development ministry sent a proposal to the Union environment ministry in late 2002 for changing the “land-use pattern” of the Adarsh plot, which was with the defence, without mentioning anything about a housing project.

The central ministry replied in March 2003, pointing out that the issue fell under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Act and may be proceeded with under it, implying that suitable approvals may be sought from the state coastal zone management authority, and not the Centre.

However, according to the minutes of the meeting, the deputy secretary of the state urban development ministry “mistook” the clarification sent by the Centre to mean that the project has been okayed.

“[Kunte] said that there was a clear misinterpretation of the response given by the ministry of environment and forests dated March 11, 2003, by the deputy secretary, urban development department,” the minutes say. Kunte also blamed the local planning bodies — the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) — for overlooking the issue of environmental clearances while approving the housing project.

The minutes also reveal that the society misled the state government officials about the extent of the land it had — showing two adjoining plots, including one belonging to Bombay Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), as being covered under the project. The BEST land “has not been amalgamated with the society’s plot as on date,” the Union ministry pointed out.