In 2009, the Bombay High Court directed the State government and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to remove encroachments along 10 metre of the Tansa pipeline that supplies water to Mumbai, for security reasons.
The decision would alter the lives of nearly 25,000 people forever. Over the next few years, nearly 5,000 families who lived in shanties located along the pipeline found themselves homeless.
A living nightmare
From 2014 onwards, half the number of families were resettled in the Eversmile Complex in Mahul, in the eastern suburb of Chembur. The complex comprised 72 buildings, with one-room kitchen tenements in each.
The name ‘Eversmile’ is perhaps one of the greatest ironies for the residents. The area is surrounded by refineries, chemical and fertiliser plants, petroleum companies and other industrial units. Soon after they shifted there, they began to complain of problems ranging from asthma to tuberculosis, rashes and allergies.
Wading through waste: A resident navigates his way through a sewage-covered lane in Mahul on Friday. | Photo Credit: Arunangsu Roy Chowdhury
There are other issues: lack of buses and hospitals, poor construction quality, dysfunctional lifts, contaminated water, and a poor sewage network. The BMC has started a healthcare centre and says it is addressing the infrastructure problems. It has also appointed a contractor and set aside ₹30 crore for the job, besides improving bus connectivity.
Residents, with the backing of activist Medha Patkar, have now been protesting for 36 days, and on Saturday threatened to march to Mantralaya if the government did not provide them alternative homes in 10 days.
Air pollution remains the primary concern. As per Bilal Khan, a member of Ms. Patkar’s Ghar Bachao Ghar Banao Andolan, data acquired from the BMC through a Right to Information application suggests that 88 deaths in the last two years were caused by pollution-related illnesses.
In 2015, the National Green Tribunal (NGT), in a separate case filed by Mahul villagers, had acknowledged the pollution in the area. It also referred to a 2013 KEM Hospital survey on respiratory morbidity of Mahul and Ambapada nearby. The survey said 67.1% of the population complained of breathlessness more than three times in a month. The case is still with the NGT.
The Bombay High Court, while hearing a writ petition by project-affected persons filed in March 2018, said in an interim order on August 8, “What is observed by NGT on the basis of material on record is that there is perceptible threat to the health of the residents of Mahul and Ambapada due to prevailing air quality in the area… At this prima facie stage, this court will have to proceed on the footing that the findings recorded by NGT continue to hold the field…”
The State was asked to allot temporary accommodation on an ad hoc basis to the resettlers till the issues were resolved or pay them a reasonable amount in rent.
Fighting it together
The residents have come together under the banner, Jeevan Bachao Andolan, and are seeking accommodation outside of Mahul.
Rekha Gadge (35), is one of the chief protesters. She had a house in Ghatkopar, but after it was demolished, lived on the pavement with her family. “Rats would break open our grocery dabbas and water would enter our belongings. Since we were given assurances, we stayed put. And because we knew about Mahul, we did not want to take the keys to flats there.” Ms. Gadges’s family income is ₹15,000, and she could not afford rent elsewehere. The result: the family moved to Mahul.
On November 12, State Housing Minister Prakash Mehta gave the protesters and Ms. Patkar an in-principle assurance to shift them to Kurla and later rehabilitate them in situ [from the area where they have been relocated]. Mr. Mehta had said the official notification will be issued within four days, but it is yet to come. Moreover, protesters have said that in a meeting with Yuva Sena leader Aditya Thackeray on November 27, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said it would not be possible to provide 5,500 homes in Kurla.
Shiv Sena MLAs had raise dthe issue during the winter session of the State Assembly and met the CM, but there has been no solution.
As their fight continues, the resettlers are hoping their wait for a better life won’t be too long.
Timeline:
2009: HC order to remove encroachment along Tansa pipeline
2013 onwards: BMC
decides eligibility, allots alternative accommodation and begins demolition
2017: Homes demolished, residents are moved to Mahul. The agitation begins
March 2018: Protesters move Bombay HC
Aug. 8, 2018: HC interim order to move protesters out of Mahul till a solution is found
Nov. 12, 2018: Protesters meet State Housing Minister Prakash Mehta, who assures he will move them to Kurla
Nov. 27, 2018: CM tells Yuva Sena leader Aditya Thackeray shifting residents to Kurla not possible, say protesters
Dec 1, 2018: Residents threaten to march to Mantralaya if they are not provided homes within 10 days