Civic body restarts drive, razes 50 illegal structures

After a brief lull, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has restarted the demolition drive at Adarsh Nagar in Andheri on Monday and demolished 50 of the total 4,200 illegal structures belonging to the Maharashtra Area and Housing Development Authority (Mhada). HT reports.

After a brief lull, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has restarted the demolition drive at Adarsh Nagar in Andheri on Monday and demolished 50 of the total 4,200 illegal structures belonging to the Maharashtra Area and Housing Development Authority (Mhada).

HT Image

The structures that were demolished include hotels, restaurants, bars and halls.

The civic administration had to abandon the demolition drive that began on December 7 in Andheri (West) owing to the lack of help from the police department in that area.

The drive aims to demolish over 2,000 illegal structures in the Mhada layout land at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Nagar (SVP Nagar),

"We received police protection from the Oshiwara police station, therefore we are continuing the demolition drive at Adarsh Nagar," said assistant municipal commissioner K-West, Ramesh Pawar.

The civic administration has used over 50 labourers, 50 police officials, 15 dumpers, three JCBs for the drive.

The BMC began demolitions of over 4,200 illegal structures built on 98 Mhada layouts in the Andheri-Versova-Jogeshwari belt.

The demolition drive had begun in April last year, when the civic administration had demolished hundreds of structures in Laxmi Industrial Estate falling under the Mhada layout.

The work of demolishing has been outsourced to two private contractors for Rs 2.68 crore.