P North ward in Malad bifurcated, BMC now has 25 wards

The BMC announced the bifurcation of P North ward on Wednesday, and suburban guardian minister M P Lodha inaugurated a few of the new P East ward’s important departments. P North ward in Malad West is currently helmed by assistant commissioner Kiran Dighavkar, who will continue to head P East ward until it becomes fully operational

Mumbai: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will now officially have 25 instead of 24 administrative wards, as a new P East ward has been carved out of P North ward in Malad West. The erstwhile P North ward will be known as P West ward after the P East ward office becomes fully operational.

(HT Photo)

P East ward will comprise Dindoshi and Kurar in Malad East, and cater to a population of five lakhs to six lakhs. It will save Dindoshi and Kurar residents the trouble of travelling to Malad West to get their civic grievances addressed.

The BMC announced the bifurcation of P North ward on Wednesday, and suburban guardian minister M P Lodha inaugurated a few of the new P East ward’s important departments. P North ward in Malad West is currently helmed by assistant commissioner Kiran Dighavkar, who will continue to head P East ward until it becomes fully operational. The process to shift all 17 departments will take at least six months.

P North ward, with a population of 12 lakhs, was the largest among all the administrative wards of Mumbai, with 18 corporators (former), two MLAs and two MPs. Malad East and Malad West have a combined area of 46.67 square km, and the erstwhile ward also has a 14.20 km coastline that includes tourist spots like Madh, Silver, Erangal, Aksa and Marve beaches. Owing to the gigantic size of the ward, the BMC has divided it into P East and P West wards.

“Right now, only four departments are operational in P East ward: water, solid waste management, maintenance and health departments (the last related to death, birth and marriage certificates),” Dighavkar told Hindustan Times. “Other departments like assessment, encroachment, building and factories and garden departments will still function from P North ward, and citizens will have to go there if they have issues related to these.”

Dighavkar added that most importantly, there was a citizen facilitation centre (CFC) and a disaster control room in P East ward. “The CFC will be for paying water bills and property tax,” he said. “There will be a dispatch centre for citizens’ complaints. It will take six months for a full-fledged ward office to be set up.”

The BMC is still scouting for a building for P East ward but Lodha has ordered it to be set up within six months. Currently, the ward office operates from a 9,600-sq-feet temporary office at K L Saigal theatre near Malad East station.

The decision to restructure the P North ward was taken three years ago. The proposal was cleared in a BMC general body meeting but did not materialise due to space constraints.