BMC to raze 625 huts for tunnel under national park
MUMBAI, July 23 -- The BMC is set to raze approximately 625 dwellings in the Amar Nagar slum in Mulund, located adjacent to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), to facilitate the construction of the proposed tunnel for the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR). Residents affected by this development will be relocated to Bhandup West (closer to Kanjurmarg), where six rehabilitation buildings are being constructed as part of the resettlement effort.
The GMLR project, a major infrastructure initiative aimed at enhancing east-west connectivity in Mumbai, features a 4.7-kilometre tunnel stretching from Film City in Goregaon to Mulund, terminating near the Amar Nagar slum. The slum dwellings currently stand in the path of the tunnel's proposed route.
A BMC official from the bridges department confirmed that the project-affected persons (PAPs) would receive apartments measuring around 300 square feet each. A total of 906 flats are being constructed at Runwal Forest in Bhandup, and the official stated that the relocation was scheduled to be completed by December.
Of the 625 hutments identified, four out of seven Annexure II eligibility lists have been completed. So far, 350 slum dwellers have been deemed eligible for rehabilitation. The remaining residents are expected to be assessed under the remaining three annexure phases and will be declared eligible. The BMC's building construction department is currently constructing the rehabilitation buildings, which have been designed as six wings in a ground-plus-23-storey configuration.
Despite these plans, confusion still prevails among many residents. Kishore Jain, a long-time resident of Amar Nagar who owns both a residential and a commercial unit, said that about 1,707 people lived in the area, and over 700 had received eviction notices. He also noted that the BMC had yet to provide clear details regarding the relocation site. "They have postponed the relocation to Diwali, and now they say it will happen after the BMC elections," he said. "But they haven't disclosed exactly where we will be shifted."
A resident also mentioned that the originally promised 375-square-feet flats had now been reduced to 300 square feet, causing further dissatisfaction. Another resident echoed this concern, pointing out that despite living in Amar Nagar for over 35 years and completing eligibility verification, the slum dwellers remained uninformed about the specifics of their new homes. Jain added that at least 20 people had already been declared ineligible for relocation....
To read the full article or to get the complete feed from this publication, please
Contact Us.