Delay likely in rehabilitation of slumdwellers on airport land

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA),SS Zhende said: “For want of water,occupation cannot be given to the tenements as BMC is not giving new connections to new colonies.”

According to Additional Collector Baliram Pawar,families living on the encroached land are not cooperating with the surveyors. “They want to know about the area to where they will be shifted. HDIL and MIAL give us these reasons. That’s why we’re not able to carry out the survey,” said Pawar.

Only 6,000 of the 80,000 families are expected to shift to the new tenements in Kurla being built by private developers,HDIL. “That’s why people want to know where they will be shifted to. Nobody is telling them that,” said local BJP leader Parag Alvani.

According to Alvani,since no rehabilitation work can take place during the monsoons and with surveys yet to begin,the first phase of the project will happen only after monsoon.

“Both the issues are connected. We’ll have to see how to solve them,” said Zhende .

On the other hand,HDIL managing director (MD) Sarang Wadhawan,said the surveys were supposed to be carried out by the collector’s office. “HDIL along with MMRDA and MIAL will be deciding on the phase-wise shifting of the people. But we need a list of eligible tenements. The list is supposed to be provided by the state government,” said Wadhawan.

HDIL is building around 16,000 flats in Kurla. According to HDIL website,around 25000 families will be shifted to Bhandup and around 2000 families will be shifted another area of Kurla.

The airport’s airside facilities is primarily dependent on the slum rehabilitation project.

“We will have to adjust the phasing of the master plan as per the slum rehabilitation project. We recognise that there is an issue in getting land. We may even have to alter our modernisation plans,” said an MIAL official on condition of anonymity.

A spokesperson for MIAL refused to comment on the issue.