Mumbai, March 18 -- The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Central Railway (CR) may have jointly identified the seven Bombay Improvement Trust (BIT) chawls adjacent to the Sandhurst Road railway station as old and dilapidated structures. But that hasn't stopped residents from hoping their buildings will be redeveloped into plush towers, along the lines of the ongoing redevelopment of Bombay Development Directorate (BDD) chawls. "These buildings are structurally safe and we have informed the authorities about this multiple times," third-generation resident Sanjay K, also a member of the local BIT chawl residents' association, told Hindustan Times. "We want the government to redevelop these chawls like they are doing for BDD chawls." Like BIT chawls in other parts of the city, the seven buildings next to Sandhurst Road were constructed under the City of Bombay Improvement Act, 1898 to house workers. The buildings are four-storeyed, with shops and godowns occupying the ground floor, and 372 tenements measuring 180-200 square feet spread across the other three floors. The seven chawls were among 24 buildings between Sandhurst Road and Masjid stations identified by the BMC and CR as old and dilapidated structures which could pose a threat to train operations and the lives of residents, sources in the civic body and railways said. "The 24 buildings were discussed at the recent joint meeting between the railways and BMC regarding pre-monsoon works. They were under the radar in July 2022 as well, after a portion of an old dilapidated BEST sub-station erected on the railway boundary wall collapsed on the tracks," an official said, requesting not to be identified. Railway officials told HT that sewage outlets of the 24 buildings including seven BIT chawls opened towards the railway tracks and continuous discharge of sewage water created slushy conditions on rail tracks. "Stagnation of water near these structures could cause them to weaken further and collapse in the future. If these structures collapse, they could hamper rail traffic movement or even result in a catastrophe, endangering the lives of railway passengers and residents," a railway official said. However, BIT chawl residents strongly disagreed with the BMC and CR, saying though the chawls were constructed during the British era, they were still structurally strong. "We have got to know that funds running into crores meant for redevelopment are not being utilised. We want the government to use some of that money to redevelop our buildings," said Sanjay K, a third generation resident. The BMC had earlier raised the rent per tenement to Rs.560, but was compelled to bring it down to Rs.180 after protests from residents, Sanjay said. Another resident, 42-year-old Kishore K, said they wanted the BMC to redevelop the chawls along with neighbouring buildings. "Our demand is, we must be provided 500-sqft homes, similar to BDD chawl residents. When funds are available, why can't they be used for our welfare?" he said. When asked about the demands of chawl residents, a BMC official said, "The buildings fall under the railway buffer zone. So we have written them a letter asking them to take necessary steps to address the issue." CR officials, however, said they do not have a policy to rehabilitate people....