BMC gives up eviction bid at Sion Koliwada

Mumbai: Facing stiff opposition from local residents, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had to give up on its attempt of cutting the water and electricity supply to the 25 dilapidated buildings in Sion Koliwada on Thursday. The civic body has filed a complaint against the residents for obstructing public servants from doing their duty.

According to the civic officials, there are 25 buildings situated in Punjabi Colony at Sion Koliwada where the Sindhi migrants from West Pakistan have been staying since the partition in 1947. The BMC had declared them dilapidated long back in 2007-08. However, the civic body’s attempts to evacuate these buildings have failed time and again due to the resistance they have faced at the hands of the local residents.

On Thursday too, the F-North ward officials reached the place with heavy police bundobast and appealed the residents to vacate the buildings, failing to which they had to threaten to severe their water and electricity connections. In response, people came out on the road in large numbers to protest the BMC’s action. Women and children gathered around the water and power cabins to prevent the officials from cutting the connections.

Local politicians like BJP MLA Tamil Selvan and Congress corporator Ravi Raja, who is also the civic opposition leader, joined the protests in opposing the civic officers Around 1,500 police officials were deployed, resulting in making the place look like a battlefield. In the end, the civic officials were left with no choice but to abandon their actions.  “There are about 1,200 families living in these buildings who will be rendered homeless if they are forced to vacate the homes. With monsoon round the corner, where will they go? The BMC should think of redeveloping these buildings for bringing some relief to the residents,” said Mr Raja.

The civic officials have vowed that they will definitely take some action in the coming days. “The BMC will not be responsible for any untoward happenings during the monsoon. The residents had opposed the eviction last year also,” Keshav
Ubale, F-North ward assistant commissioner said.