Shinde asks SRA for DPR to rehabilitate Kurla-Trombay railway track dwellers

Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has asked the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) to submit a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the rehabilitation of slum dwellers who have lived for years along the railway tracks in the Kurla-Trombay area. Shinde held a meeting at Sahyadri Guest House on various issues concerning the Chembur, Kurla and Chandivali assembly constituencies, and all of them were reviewed in detail.

The meeting, convened to resolve civic problems, was attended by former MP Prakash Ambedkar, former MP Rahul Shewale, MLA Tukaram Kate, MLA Dilip Lande, MLA Mangesh Kudalkar and Sujat Ambedkar, among others. Also present were Naveen Sona, Principal Secretary to the Deputy Chief Minister, Saurabh Katiyar, Mumbai Suburban District Collector, Mahendra Kalyankar, Chief Executive Officer of the SRA, and Dr Avinash Dhakne, Additional Commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation. Senior officers of the MMRDA and the departments concerned joined through video conferencing.

The issue of rehabilitating people living along the railway tracks, from Chikhalwadi and RCF-Priyadarshini to Mahul in the Kurla-Trombay area, was raised at the meeting. Shinde contacted Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw during the meeting, briefed him on the situation and requested him to look into the matter. Shinde said a notice issued by the railway administration has caused unease among people who have lived there for many years. He said the SRA should coordinate with the Brihanmumbai municipal administration and the agencies concerned and present a DPR for their rehabilitation, so that no action leads to a law-and-order problem.

The redevelopment through the SRA of the Patra Chawl settlement of Mumbai municipal employees at Khardev Nagar, and other pending issues, were also discussed. The redevelopment of the residential cooperative housing societies of municipal employees in the Chembur constituency was also raised. Shinde made clear that implementing a new policy on the premium charged for redevelopment of employees' housing societies would be considered positively.

The meeting also heard that the financial benefits and pensions of many retired municipal employees have been withheld because they did not vacate their quarters after retirement. The Deputy Chief Minister said it was not right to withhold the entire dues of retired employees. The children of some retired employees have joined the municipal corporation on compassionate grounds, so it is not possible for them to vacate immediately. He directed that the matter be considered sympathetically and that a proposal be submitted on a priority basis.

Problems with sewage channels in the Nehru Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Sahakar Nagar and Naveen Tilak Nagar MHADA colonies of the Kurla constituency were also discussed. Shinde directed the agencies concerned to work together and act on the problems of residents of these colonies. The rehabilitation of slums along the railway in Sable Nagar, Kranti Nagar and Santoshimata Nagar, and the issue of people affected by a railway project on Burma Shell Line, were also raised. Rehabilitation and relief for the citizens concerned were discussed on these issues.