Belapur locals use RTI to save fort
Viju B I TNN
Navi Mumbai: For the last two years, Belapur residents have been fighting
hard to protect a 400-year-old crumbling, historic Peshwa fort and a fresh
water pond that is in danger of being filled up and encroached upon.
But after the Navi Mumbai civic authorities refused to act on repeated
complaints, residents finally decided to use the Right to Information Act to
get things moving.
The Belapur fort, in the Killa Gaothan area, gets special mention in the
Bombay Gazetteer. The holding pond, in fact, collects fresh water and was a
source of drinking water for residents living in the gaothan area for many
years. And though a board put up by the NMMC clearly states that water from
the pond is to be used for drinking only, the pond is constantly used by
encroachers and workers involved in the dredging of the docks for washing
clothes and bathing. “The result was that the water turned brackish and
began to emanate a foul smell. It also became a breeding ground for
mosquitoes,” said P B Menon, president of Killa Goathan Environmental and
Ecological Protection Society (KGEEPS).
The fort itself is in danger. There were three forts in the area but two
have already been destroyed due to the vagaries of time. “And now, the only
fort that is remaining at the mouth of the Panvel river is being destroyed
due to encroachment,” said Menon. KGEEPS members met senior officials at
NMMC and apprised them of the matter but there was no response.
Meanwhile, the well in the middle of the pond which used to collect
waste water also dried up and got choked. The hill on top of which the fort
was situated was gradually encroached upon and mud was dug up from all
sides. “That is when we realised that if we do not do something fast, the
entire area will have a proliferation of slums,” said Menon. The residents
then filed a query under the Right to Information Act, asking what
provisions the NMMC had made to clear encroachments in the area. “We also
filed five other RTI queries to different government agencies on the same
issue. After a month we got a reply from NMMC stating that funds had been
allocated to construct boundary walls, a drainage system and to clear debris
in the pond. The RTI reply also said that an order had been passed to
demolish the encroachments,” said Menon.
The heritage board also replied that they were waiting for a directive
from the Thane collectorate to demarcate the fort as a heritage structure.
“It is a small beginning. But now if the NMMC does not begin work in a week’s
time we will file another RTI application asking why there is a delay,”
said Menon.
HOLDING FORT: There were three forts in the area, but now only one remains