Residents allege land sharks are flouting PIL by filling up this water body. Administration washes hands off, saying matter is now in court
Residents allege land sharks are flouting PIL by filling up this water body. Administration washes hands off, saying matter is now in court
In spite of a PIL being admitted in the High Court in the first week of April to save the Charkop lake in sector 2, opposite New India Bank, the last few days have seen hectic work on the site. The residents now allege that a drainage is being diverted into the disputed lake, to further choke it.
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False promises?
After Sunday MiD DAY launched a campaign to save the Charkop lake, beginning on April 8, 2007, the then Mumbai collector, former Executive Magistrate and tehsildar Dashrat Sankhe had gone on record stating that the wetland was indeed a natural water body and would be protected under any circumstances.
He assured that the area, which was handed over to the potters' society, could not be sold in the open market and the government had the right to even take back the plot if any irregularities were found.
Mumbai District Collector Vishwas Patil too had stated that he was aware of the situation and had informed the tehsildar to submit a fresh report on the situation at the earliest.
Dumper moves in
In February 2008, over a thousand truckload of debris was dumped to reclaim a substantial area of the natural water body.
Collector Patil had then categorically stated that he had initiated a high-level inquiry headed by a three-member team of deputy collectors and city officers to look into the matter and criminal proceedings would be initiated against the erring parties.
Speaking to this correspondent on Saturday, Patil now asserted that the case was in court and that they had found no record of the lake in their records. What this means is that three private housing societies, who have been sanctioned by the Government, had been virtually given a green signal to commence their building work.
Home to birds
Interestingly, the disputed water body, which can be prominently sighted on Google earth, has been certified by the Bombay Natural History Society officials. A top official confirmed that it is a host to at least 10 species of migratory and resident birds and a "natural ecosystem" (Sunday MiD DAY has a copy of this).
The report further confirmed that this lake was not only an important bird area, but home for a host of fauna, contributing to the ecological and hydrological balance of the area.
Land sharks taking over
Reji Abraham, president of United Association for Social, Educational and Public Welfare, a resident body which has been opposing what they deem as the systematic acquisition of a natural water body by land sharks, alleged that the current work being undertaken was a total contempt of court.
"When a PIL has been admitted in the high court, how can work on site still carry on? Our association now plans to take further legal action to not only stop the reclamation, but also undo the damage caused by dumping, by using a dredging process."
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