On the 35th day of their protest, Mahul residents on Saturday threatened to march to Mantralaya if the government failed to provide them alternative homes.
Activist Medha Patkar, who is protesting with the residents, said, “We will take out a march with the support of all the bastis of the city, either on December 12 or 13 … Terrorism is inflicted on the poor. The displacement of Mahul residents is also a kind of terrorism, and hence it is not possible to stay quiet.” Members of the Mahul Sangharsh Prakalpgrast Samiti will decide the details of the march in a few days.
Conflicting promises
Bilal Khan of the Ghar Bachao Ghar Banao Andolan, also a member of the Samiti, said the Bombay High Court had declared Mahul unfit for living and directed the government to inform the court by October 1 where it planned to shift residents of the area. “Before we began protesting, the government’s stand was that there were no homes. But on the third day of the protest, MHADA assured to give us 300 homes. After our agitation outside Housing Minister Prakash Mehta’s residence, he held a meeting and said 5,500 houses could be provided in Kurla,” he said.
On November 11, the protesters had made a human chain of over a kilometre long. Ms. Patkar and representatives of the Samiti met Mr. Mehta the next day, where the minister in-principle agreed to shift the families to Kurla on a temporary basis and later to rehabilitate them to the areas they lived in originally. These families were shifted to Mahul from Andheri, Kurla and Ghatkopar after being displaced for various projects.
“But a few days later, when Yuva Sena leader Aditya Thackeray raised the issue with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, the CM told him that it won’t be possible to provide the 5,500 homes. It is clear that there is no coordination within the government, that too on such a critical topic,” Mr. Khan said.
Toxic air
He said data acquired from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation through RTI suggests that 88 deaths in the area in the last two years were due to pollution-related illnesses. Anita Dhole, a member of the Samiti, said, “Today, Dharmesh Rathod died and he is the seventh death in the last 35 days. How many more need to die before the government acts? The CAG report, IIT findings and National Green Tribunal have all recommended rehabilitation.” She said residents have been living in fear since the fire at the Bharat Petroleum refinery on August 8.
Mr. Khan said they have been demanding a meeting with the CM, who heads key departments such as urban development. Ms. Patkar said, “The CM, while campaigning in 2014, promised 10 lakh houses. Mahul residents need only 5,500.”