Versova CRZ offender faces civic body’s wrath……..Sandeep Ashar
Mumbai: Amidst heavy police bandobast, the demolition squad of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) pulled down a two-storey illegal structure at Versova on Thursday. The RCC structure, constructed along the coastline, was in violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms, said assistant municipal commissioner Ramesh Pawar “No permission had been granted by the BMC for the construction. Even the collector’s office, which owns the portion of land, had not granted any permission,” Pawar said. Six commercial galas were being set up on the ground floor of the structure, while the upper two floors were being constructed for residential use, he added.
According to Pawar, the structure built by Nitin and Savesh Shetty has been demolished twice previously. Due to the repeated nature of the offence, the BMC has now decided to book the duo under the stringent Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities (MPDA) Act. Action under another section, the Maharashtra Region Town Planning (MRTP) Act, had already been initiated.
One SRP platoon, 10 police officers, 50 police constables, 10 municipal engineers, 50 labourers, two JCB machines, and two cutters and compressors were used for the demolition drive. The time taken in arranging police bandobast was cited as a reason for a three-month delay in carrying out the demolition. It was allegedly due to a disagreement between the police and the civic body over charges levied by the police for the bandobast activity. With the structure yet to be pulled down completely, the demolition is expected to continue today as well.