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Municipal corporation authorities resume demolition drive in Ulhasnagar

Prachi Pinglay

Residents anxious, term the move "second Partition"

MUMBAI: One more building, of the 855 illegal ones, was razed to the ground on Friday in Ulhasnagar, a densely populated Sindhi-dominated township in Thane district near here. The Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (UMC) resumed its demolition drive to implement the Bombay High Court's order after the State Government failed to respond to the plea to alter the Development Control Rules.

On April 27, the High Court ordered the UMC to demolish the listed 855 buildings that violated construction rules. This was in response to two separate public interest litigations filed in 1987 and 2003. On November 27, the High Court directed the UMC to implement its April order. The affected parties approached the Supreme Court but were unsuccessful in getting a stay.

Violent protests

Two weeks ago, violent protests took place in Ulhasnagar when the demolitions began. The Deputy Chairman of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Vasant Davkhare, suggested that the constructions be regularised after the payment of a fine. But on December 7, the High Court ordered that the demolitions be resumed.

Ulhasnagar, earlier called Kalyan camp, was given to Sindhi refugees after the Partition. Originally meant for 10,000 soldiers, the barracks, divided into five camps, were handed over to over 90,000 refugees. They were also permitted to construct buildings on open spaces.

Over the past 50 years, the town, situated on the banks of river Ulhas, was transformed into a thriving business centre and home to over seven lakh people. However, in this period, unauthorised constructions mushroomed. These include several five to seven storeyed buildings, some on municipal land and reserved plots.

The residents refer to the demolitions as the "Second Partition." Maya Panjwani, 62, came here from Karachi when she was barely four; her first memories are of setting up a makeshift house in camp no. 5.

"We left everything behind in Karachi. We came here with the clothes we were wearing and nothing else. Since then, we have struggled and made our lives. By asking us to leave, you are making us refugees all over again. There must be some other solution. The authorities take house tax from us. If we are late, they threaten to take our TV sets and refrigerator. When there are telephone connections, water and electricity meters, how can suddenly all this be declared illegal," Ms. Panjwani asked. "Rani Maa," the building that she lives in with her son and daughter-in-law, is one of the 855 buildings to have received notices.

Some residents said their children were not going to school or that they were not able to study as they were distracted and anxious. Old couples have neither the money nor the energy to find a new house.

Kishan Motwani came to Ulhasnagar thinking he would be closer to his community and would have better business prospects. "We bought our house at the market rate. Nobody told us what was wrong. These buildings have not come up in one day. What were the authorities doing then? Why didn't they stop the builders? Where are we to go now," he asked.

Petitioner Hari Tanwani echoes their sentiments. "I do not want my fellow brothers to be homeless. In fact, my petition is not just about demolitions. None of the buildings listed in my PIL have been included in this list. I have listed buildings that came up after 2000. I also asked for Rs. 100 crore for a rehabilitation plan. My petition has not been heard and disposed. I am being made the villain without any fault of mine."The former Mayor, Haridas Makhija, who is trying to get a stay on the demolitions, said the only solution was to regularise the buildings. "No one denies that rules have been flouted. It is not only these 855 buildings; all the buildings in Ulhasnagar are like this. But one must understand how these came up. There is no space to expand horizontally. The only way to construct is vertical. The population kept rising; people keep pouring in because of the business activity. If the demolitions happen, at least one lakh people will be homeless. What facilities have been made for them?"

UMC commissioner D.S. Patil said he was just implementing the High Court order. Police personnel have been posted in the city to maintain law and order.

The UMC has to submit a progress report on January 10 to the High Court. The next hearing of the case is on January 11.

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