BMC passes buck over Worli Seaface construction……Pandurang Mhaske
An illegal hotel construction extending into the sea at Worli Seaface is going on unabated and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has refused to take any action saying that the area is not under its purview.
The same structure was demolished twice by civic body in 2007 and 2008. The structure has at Worli Seaface opposite the Worli Dairy.
Many civic officials, state government officials, including ministers and MLAs, cross the stretch everyday, but no one has taken notice of the unauthorised extension. The locals have no clue of what is coming up there. “There is some influential person behind this construction. Otherwise the BMC would not have ignored it,” a local said.
According to sources, the two-storey structure, whose lower floor has gone below the ground level and extended into the Arabian Sea, was constructed during Diwali vacations, violating all norms and without any permission. The areas within 500 meters of the Seaface fall under the coastal regulatory zone, where construction activity is restrictive.
To avoid being noticed, temporary hutments have been pitched alongside the structure and the structure is covered with tarpaulin and plastic papers. Only the wooden structure (possibly the interiors) is visible.
NV Pai, assistant municipal commissioner of the G-south ward said the office is monitoring the activity, and construction is not on. “It comes under the city collector’s jurisdiction. They have to take action against it,” he said. On why the BMC is monitoring the construction when not under its purview, he said that at the end of the day all fingers are pointed at BMC.
“The civic body has not served stop-work notice to the structure yet. The preliminary action has to be initiated by the BMC and then the city collector has to be informed for further action,” said the source.