Vito Corleones rule the roost in Chembur slums
Civic body prepares a list of 125 slumlords operating in 16 of the 24 wards…Pandurang Mhaske
Civic body prepares a list of 125 slumlords operating in 16 of the 24 wards…Pandurang Mhaske
For the first time in years, the BMC has compiled a list of 125 slumlords who are operating in 16 of the 24 municipal wards of the city and suburbs, grabbing public lands and helping slums to proliferate.
The list, a copy of which is available with DNA, shows that Chembur is a slum haven, with 31 of the slumlords operating in this area alone. Bhandup is the second worst afflicted suburb, with 20 slumlords. Andheri (East) ranks third with 10 while Dadar, Malad (West), Kurla (West), and Govandi have eight each.
After a massive demolition drive undertaken collectively by the BMC and the collector’s office a little over two years ago, the state home department had taken an initiative to eliminate slumlords and curb the proliferation of slums on open spaces in the city. Home minister RR Patil had directed the police to book slumlords under the stringent Maharashtra Prevention of Disruptive Activities (MPDA) Act. An offender booked under the act can be externed.
Last September, the government formed a committee comprising BMC officials and police officers to improve coordination between the two agencies. The committee met in December. Next month, the BMC gave the list of slumlords to the police.
Almost three months have elapsed, but no action has been forthcoming from the Mumbai Police. Asked about the tardiness of the force, joint commissioner of police (law and order) KL Prasad said he was unaware of the existence of such a list. “But if we have the list, we will take stringent action against the people named in it,” he assured DNA.
Almost three months have elapsed, but no action has been forthcoming from the Mumbai Police. Asked about the tardiness of the force, joint commissioner of police (law and order) KL Prasad said he was unaware of the existence of such a list. “But if we have the list, we will take stringent action against the people named in it,” he assured DNA.
A senior BMC official said, “There should be coordination between the BMC and the police, which is not happening. So the slumlords are going scot free. If the assistant commissioners (ward officers) of the BMC and the police station concerned initiate action jointly, there will be some results.”
According to the official, who did not want to be named, if police act on the basis of the list that has been supplied to them, local politicians and even some corporators and MLAs could get into trouble. That is because, according to this official, many of the names in the list are simply fronts for these politicians.