Kurla SRA residents in dire straits after sixth fire in six years

On September 16, the 94 families in Building Number 7 in E wing of Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar CHS were badly affected after a major fire broke out in the electric duct. Forty-three residents had to be admitted to Rajawadi Hospital and Kohinoor Hospital owing to complaints of suffocation. Ever since, the families have been living without electricity

MUMBAI: Unattended garbage, irregular water supply and frequent fires have put the lives of 400-odd families living in rehab buildings near Kohinoor Hospital in Kurla West at risk. The inhabitants of wings A to G, comprising 94 families in each wing, were rehabilitated from the Bhim Nagar and Ambedkar Nagar slums near the Tansa water main pipeline at Vidyavihar in December 2016. Being uprooted from the slums and shifted to Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) buildings should have bettered their lot but has actually changed their lives for the worse, they said.

“Due to the absence of electricity and ventilation, children sleep in the passages and corridors of the building for air,” said Pradeep Patekar, a seventh-floor resident from E wing. “Women cook in the dark and use their cell phone light or torch to illuminate the rooms.” (Satish Bate/ HT PHOTO)

On September 16, the 94 families in Building Number 7 in E wing of Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar CHS were badly affected after a major fire broke out in the electric duct. Forty-three residents had to be admitted to Rajawadi Hospital and Kohinoor Hospital owing to complaints of suffocation. Ever since, the families have been living without electricity.

But this is not an unusual occurrence for residents of the SRA society. In C wing, a similar fire on February 15 killed a senior citizen, and residents had to live without electricity for 45 days. Women from C wing pawned their jewellery and men took loans to pay for repairs and the restoration of their electricity supply. In E wing today, the story repeats itself.

“Due to the absence of electricity and ventilation, children sleep in the passages and corridors of the building for air,” said Pradeep Patekar, a seventh-floor resident from E wing. “Women cook in the dark and use their cell phone light or torch to illuminate the rooms.”

Ratna Mane, a first-floor resident of E wing said she had to use her mobile phone torch to do all the housework and cooking. “We don’t have a choice, as we are still collecting money to repair the wiring,” she said. “We are unable to work in this heat. Children study in the dark. We have been told by committee members that the electricity will be restored in 15 days.”

Sudhakar Gaikwad, a lawyer who lives in C wing, which caught fire in February, said that residents there had to wait for 45 days to get their electricity back owing to the whopping sum of ₹10 lakh they needed to shell out to restore it. “Eighty-six families pooled in,” he said. “Since the demographic profile is domestic workers, rickshaw drivers and the like, they cannot afford to pay immediately. Many women pawned their jewellery and took loans from friends. In E wing, the condition is even worse, as not all 94 families are in a position to pay the contractor’s ₹14-lakh bill.”

Patekar said the SRA society had caught fire for the sixth time since 2017. The first fire was in the F wing in 2017, followed by C wing in 2018 and G wing in 2019. On February 15 this year, C wing fell prey to a fire again, in which a senior citizen died. E wing saw a fire in January 2023 and now again on September 16.

Patekar said he had communicated with the fire brigade two months ago about combustible material being stored on one of the floors by a businessman, but the fire brigade paid no heed. “Had they inspected our building two months ago, last week’s fire could have been averted,” he said.

The SRA society has been handed over by the SRA to MMRDA, and Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar CHS Building Number 7, E wing’s registration has been secured by the latter. When Satish Lokhande, CEO of the SRA was contacted, he said the building had been handed over to MMRDA a long time ago, and the society was now registered with the authority.

“No one wants to accept responsibility now,” said Patekar. “The BMC doesn’t provide proper civic services, the SRA has washed its hands of us after giving us possession and MMRDA isn’t bothered. It is our lives at risk here with no structural audit or fire safety. Our life in the slums was more hassle-free than in these buildings.”