CIDCO stops work on artificial turf, basketball court at NMSA

The construction was being opposed by several members of the club, who ran a signature campaign and had complained to CIDCO asking for the work to be stopped.

NAVI MUMBAI: Following opposition by several members of the club, an order has been issued to stop the laying of artificial turf for a new football ground and the construction of a basketball court at the Navi Mumbai Sports Association (NMSA) in Vashi.

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The City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) has ordered both the controversial constructions, which together are expected to cost ₹1 crore, be stopped at the oldest and the biggest sports club in Navi Mumbai.

The construction was being opposed by several members of the club, who ran a signature campaign and had complained to CIDCO asking for the work to be stopped. Even within the managing committee of the club, there are differences concerning the project. The club officials, however, have termed the order partisan and claimed they were not given an opportunity to present their case.

The controversy in the club, which is led by MLA Ganesh Naik, was reported in Hindustan Times in its April 17 edition. CIDCO said they had taken note of the signature campaign and reports in the media following which it issued the order.

The objecting members claimed that the new projects would reduce the open space available for members. They said that the only mud pathway in the node, used by senior citizens for their daily walk, will also be taken away.

Claiming that the new facilities are being built only for commercial gains, they stated that the members won’t be allowed to use them as is the case with the existing non-synthetic football ground. Members also alleged vested interest in the plan.

The order, by CIDCO manager (Town Services-1), dated April 19, stated that based on the complaint to CIDCO managing director and media reports, it has learnt that the club has undertaken illegal construction of a football turf on the plot allotted to it in sector 9A of Vashi.

The order said that it appears that the requisite permission from the appropriate planning authority has not been taken. It directed that the illegal work be stopped immediately, else, it will be a violation of the agreement and hence, legal action will be taken, and the lease agreement cancelled.

Sandeep Thakur, an RTI activist and a club member, said, “It is the basic requirement under the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning Act (MRTP) Act that the permission of the owner of the land needs to be taken for any development or change of use. The CIDCO order should have come much earlier.”

He added, “We haven’t seen the permission issued by Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) as is being claimed by the management. However, if it has been given, then it is a fraud committed by the civic body. It should have first asked for a no objection certificate (NOC) from CIDCO before giving any sanction.”

Commenting on the order, Ankush Vaiti, one of the signatories in the complaint said, “There are around 24 poles planned for which concretisation is required. There will also be drainage work, which will also require concretisation. For this, CIDCO’s permission is required, not the NMMC’s. In fact, they say they had applied to CIDCO for NOC. So, they knew it was needed. How did they start the work without it?”

He added, “The NMMC is yet to issue occupancy certificate for a toilet constructed at the FIFA football ground due to lack of NOC from CIDCO. The penalty is going to be huge.”

Vaiti claimed, “Despite the CIDCO order, work on the project has not stopped with concretisation still happening. We are complaining to CIDCO about it.”

Terming the CIDCO order partisan, Sanjay Nikam, NMSA treasurer, said, “The CIDCO order came without our side being heard. This is against the natural law of justice. We met the concerned CIDCO officials and informed them about the NMMC permission that we have. We told them we had applied to CIDCO for NOC on June 2 last year but did not get any response. They said they were not aware of any such documents.”

He added, “CIDCO has agreed to issue us a show cause notice to enable us to respond. We shall then reply with the fact that there is no construction, no use of FSI and hence, CIDCO permission is not required, and that of the NMMC suffices. The CIDCO order itself states that permission of the appropriate agency is required.”

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Management divided

Dr Dilip Rane, vice president of NMSA, is not pleased with the projects. He said, “We have FIFA certified football ground, ITF certified tennis court, badminton and other world class infrastructure already in NMSA. All these years, we have ensured that the members are not burdened with the cost of the infrastructure being developed. I feel we need to maintain the infrastructure that we have at present to the best standards rather than undertaking new developments, which will burden the members.”