Oshiwara storm water pumping station likely to be delayed

The Bombay High Court has restrained the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from constructing a storm water pumping station on private land in Oshiwara. The court issued the order after landowners filed a plea, stating that they should be compensated for the use of their land. The BMC had initially identified the land for acquisition but later shifted the project to Mogra nullah. The court ruled that the landowners had a prima facie case and granted an interim injunction to prevent construction on the private land.

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) on Thursday restrained the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) from entering a private land at Mogra in Oshiwara where the civic body intended to construct the seventh storm water pumping station for the city – to provide much-needed relief to areas like Oshiwara, Andheri, Versova and Jogeshwari which witness flooding during monsoon. The pumping station, planned after the 2005 deluge with the capacity of pumping out 42,000 litres per second, is expected to cost around ₹400 crore.

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A single judge bench of justice Manish Pitale issued the order on a plea filed by landowners - Samartha Development Corporation and two others, after the BMC identified a piece of land owned by them (out of around 158 acres ‘No Development Zone’ at Mogra in Oshiwara village) and had also started the process for acquisition of the land parcel, but it abruptly dropped the acquisition proceedings and shifted the project to Mogra nullah itself, claiming that there was no need to acquire the land and pay compensation to the land owners.

The landowners had moved to the high court after the civic body appointed contractors to construct the storm water pumping station on Mogra nullah in July 2021 and sought an injunction against the BMC, civic officers and contractors, contending that they cannot use their land for construction of the pumping station without compensating them.

Responding to their plea for interim injunction, the civic body had on October 21, 2021, made a statement that they will need to undertake several preparatory steps and obtain various permissions, including environmental clearance, before starting actual work at site and therefore actual work was not likely to start immediately.

In its reply, the BMC had also disputed the landowners title to the lands and claimed that in any case, the owners could not claim any title to the land covered by Mogra nullah and therefore there was no need to acquire the property and pay compensation to the landowners.

Justice Pitale on Thursday decided the plea filed by the landowners for interim injunction, disapproving the stand taken by the civic body that it was not required to compensate the landowners.

The court noted that BMC had undertaken steps for acquiring an identified piece of land from 158-acres NDZ lands, for construction of the storm water pumping station, joint measurements were conducted for the acquisition, and the civic body had even deposited the amount of compensation to be paid to the landowners.

“Yet, suddenly in a volte-face, defendant No.1 (BMC) abandoned the acquisition process and shifted the site of the storm water pumping station from the identified piece of land onto the nallah itself claiming that there was no need for acquisition of land and that, in any case, the land underneath the nallah was available for defendant No.1 to take appropriate steps in the matter.

The court also noted that the landowners never raised any objection to the acquisition of a portion required for construction of the storm water pumping station, “but abandonment of such steps for acquisition and attempt on the part of defendant No.1 (BMC) to directly enter upon the land belonging to the plaintiffs, indicated a high-handed approach.”

Justice Pitale said “a prima facie case was made out by the landowners” and if interim injunction was not granted to them, they will suffer grave and irreparable loss for the reason that the BMC will enter upon their land and start the construction, and thereby deprive the owners of enjoyment of their own land, without taking any steps towards acquisition and payment of appropriate compensation.

“This is compounded by the action of defendant No.1 (BMC) of having abandoned the acquisition process and suddenly changing tracks to claim that the plaintiffs had no title to the property at all,” the court said, adding that if this stand of the civic body was accepted then the entire construction of Lokhandwala Complex in Oshiwara – spread over around 238 acres would come in jeopardy. Interestingly, the court said, the BMC itself has approved the construction plans and granted planning permissions for the constructions.