January 9: Despite Chief Minister Manohar Joshi's order to stop all demolitions in the city till March 15 in view of the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls, BMC merrily continues its demolition drive virtually every day.In a simultaneous crackdown on illegal slums ordered by municipal commissioner Girish Gokhale for the third time this week, the BMC today demolished slums in the A, C, F south, G south, H east, P north, M west, and R north wards. Officers maintained all these slums were constructed recently and didn't come under the purview of the CM's stay order. Gokhale, who has earlier said demolitions will not stop till he receives the CM's order in writing, was not available for comment.
According to a government notification dated January 5 issued by the Housing and Special Assistance department of Mantralaya, BMC has been ordered to stop demolishing all illegal slums to avoid law and order problems in view of the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
The notification also cites non-availability of adequate
policemen to escort demolition squads due to their pre-occupation with election bandobast as one of the reasons for staying demolitions.
This has created confusion in the BMC, and officers are unable to ascertain whether they should go ahead with scheduled demolitions under the ongoing demolition drive, or follow the conditions of the CM's order and let all slums stand till March 15.
"The BMC has been given powers to demolish new slums that may be put up and also those whose demolition is unavoidable in view of a court order," a BMC officer said on conditions of anonymity. The Chief Minister's decision also does not mean that slumdwellers will be given a free hand to encroach upon vacant land, he added.
"However, in a few cases, where the structures have been rebuilt after recent demolitions, we do not know whether to take action again or just let them stand till March 15," he said.
On the other hand, slumdwellers have also taken this opportunity to save their property from the demolition squads.
After yesterday's demolition of unauthorised slums near Suman Nagar in Chembur, the dwellers rushed to Mantralaya and submitted memoranda to the chief minister and the housing minister, saying they have been staying there since before January 1, 1995, the cut-off date for the slum redevelopment scheme. "These slums were first demolished in 1994, then again in 1996, and recently under the demolition drive in August 1997. "However, they came up again within two months, and the ward office was flooded with complaints from residents of surrounding localities. Naturally, the chief minister's order does not stop BMC from demolishing such slums," the officer said.
Shiv Sena's Nandu Satam, leader of the House, said the BMC could not flout the government's order. "They don't have the guts to do it. The commissioner is aware of the amount of trouble he will invite if slums are demolished in violation of the order," he said.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
