13.1.10

Mumbai Airport expansion moves at a crawl



The township being readied in Kurla for airport evacuees.




The airport modernisation and expansion project involves one of the biggest urban displacements in Mumbai’s history affecting as many as 80,000 families—nearly four lakh people—spread over three assembly constituencies, Vile Parle, Kalina and Kurla. But two years after the state initiated the land acquisition process, there is no clear rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) plan, and the future of the affected families is uncertain. In fact, barely two weeks ago, Baliram Pawar, additional collector of Housing, asked Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) to come clean on the R&R plan for the Project-Affected People (PAP). Over the last two years, Pawar and his team have been unsuccessfully trying to survey the 276 acres of airport land that is to be repossessed as part of the modernisation and expansion plans. Determined opposition from residents and encroachers has meant that repeated attempts by the government to carry out the survey have failed. “We have made it clear that unless the R&R plan is clarified to the public or their elected representatives, it will not be possible to carry out the survey,’’ said Pawar. At the heart of the matter for the 7,000 East Indian families in one of Mumbai’s oldest villages, Sahar Village—which is part of the Vile Parle assembly constituency—is the disputed ownership of land. The community contends that while the British took over their agricultural lands, it had spared the gaothans on which their houses stood. They argue that they are the legitimate owners of their houses and the land on which their buildings stand. Senior MIAL officials, however, insist that the land already belongs to the Airport Authority and those residing there are encroachers. The church is spearheading the people’s agitation. ‘Do not sell, do not buy, do not repair,’ is what the parishioners of Our Lady of Health Church are being repeatedly exhorted to do. The reason is simple: Do not sell the land to the authorities as the money being offered is below the market rate. Do not purchase land because those who buy now may get nothing as they may not be covered by the 2000 cut-off date for rehabilitation. And do not repair as the bulldozers could come anytime.
In 1942, the British had acquired 1,875 acres of agricultural land belonging to East Indians residing in 12 villages in the vicinity. With no land, the agrarian community could not take advantage of Mumbai’s growth despite being the original inhabitants of the city. Recently, the state accorded East Indians the status of an Other Backward Class. This time around, though, the community is determined to fight for its dues. In November 2007, the state issued a notice to residents for land acquisition. Uniting under the banner of Sahar Citizens Forum, residents demanded that the government reveal its R&R plan. Krishna Hegde, Congress MLA from Vile Parle, said that he and MP Priya Dutt have made it clear that affected residents must be rehabilitated in the vicinity. “Unless that happens, there will be huge upheaval. We are identifying plots for rehabilitation,’’ he said.
Lack of transparency on the part of the authorities is another problem, said families. N Sureshan, general secretary, Airport Authority Zopadpatti Sangharsh Samiti, said: “The government has been unable to carry out the survey because the residents are fighting the non-transparent methods. We want homes in the vicinity. The area is our source of livelihood.’’ Alice Therratil, Congress corporator from Kalina, concurred and claimed that despite agitations carried out by affected families in her consituency, they are no closer to knowing the R&R plans.
Another bone of contention is that the state is carrying out the R&R plan under the Slum Rehabilitation Scheme (SRS), though with a more relaxed 2000 cut-off date. Residents are demanding that the more humane National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy, 2007 (NRRS) be used, as it has no cut-off date and offers PAPs a better deal, including a good grievance redressal mechanism.
The SRS, according to Amita Bhide, chairperson of urban planning and governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, deals primarily with housing and fails to meet the expectations of a project of this magnitude. “We have a comprehensive R&R plan for the Mumbai Urban Transport Project. It can be used here too. The NRRS will also help, as it will minimise the circle of impact and help monitor the impact of resettlement on people,’’ she said. M Rameshkumar, additional chief secretary, rehabilitation, Maharashtra, said the NRRS policy is applicable in this case. He added that the project has not been notified under the state’s Rehabilitation of Project Affected Persons Act, 1999.

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