MUMBAI, Sept. 13 -- With municipal elections looming, the state government is hoping to fulfil a long-standing demand of the Koli community, one that will safeguard their cultural identity and reaffirm their place in Mumbai's social fabric. On Friday, Ashish Shelar, guardian minister for Mumbai suburban district, directed government officials to enter koliwadas whose boundaries have been demarcated into Mumbai's Development Control and Promotion Regulations 2034, (DCPR). He said this must be done within 60 days. The Kolis, Mumbai's aboriginal fishing community, have been demanding that the boundaries of their koliwadas be formally marked and entered into official records. This would clarify their position in the redevelopment landscape, protecting their settlements from being labelled slums and targeted by builders. The threat is particularly real as the koliwadas, being coastal settlements, occupy some of Mumbai's most coveted real estate. At Friday's meeting, Shelar reviewed the status of the koliwadas' demarcation. Mumbai suburban district collector Saurabh Katiyar said that of the 29 koliwadas in the Mumbai suburban district, the boundaries of 23 have been marked. The demarcation of six are pending, as parts of them fall under tribal hamlets. During the demarcation exercise, three new koliwadas were identified, Katiyar said. Present at Friday's meeting were BJP office-bearers from North Mumbai, senior officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA), Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), civic departments concerned with the issue, as well as Dahisar MLA Manisha Chaudhary and former MP Gopal Shetty. Chaudhary pointed out that although the demarcation is largely complete, the lack of DP entries is creating difficulties for Koli residents, even for home repairs. Shetty said Shelar would be visiting Borivali on Saturday and meeting local civic staff to sort out the issues. Devendra Tandel, a Koli leader who heads the Akhil Maharashtra Machimar Kruti Samiti said, "Most Kolis have their homes registered in their names but the land is not theirs."...