Mumbai: MMRDA allotment sparks trouble for Elphinstone bridge-affected families

After a longstanding battle the people affected by the Elphinstone Bridge demolition finally received allotment letters to their new homes from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority MMRDA on January 22 but only to face more troubles As many as 13 of 23 families of Haji Noorani one of the two buildings from where residents were supposed to be displaced have raised various concerns regarding the houses provided to them From faraway locations to wrong names on allotment letters the residents have been put in difficult situationsShutting down businessOf the 23 affected families seven have shops in the building while 15 have houses with one family owning two houses However those with commercial properties have been allotted residential units taking away their sole source of incomeSuhas Badade sits at his soontobe demolished shopldquoWhat will we do with this house Already I had to give up my sugarcane juice business after footfall reduced post demolition of the bridge I would earn at least Rs 70000 per month But after the footfall reduced I was unable to earn even Rs 10000 I was forced to rent out the space to a scrap dealer who pays me R15000 per month Now once they demolish this building and this shop goes down even the Rs 15000 I earn will be lost This shop is the sole source of income for my family of ninerdquo said Suhas BadadeFacing similar troubles is Mala Gupta who runs a chaat centre in the same building ldquoOur third generation was also born here and we have been running this business for the last 20 years They have given us a house in Wadala in exchange for this shop This shop is our only source of income That house is of no use to us They are taking away our source of income How do they expect us to survive How do we get food when we go to live in that houserdquo questioned GuptaThis apart the shop owners have also stated that selling these rehabilitation houses isnrsquot an option as they will not fetch a good amount ldquoIf I sell my shop it will easily fetch me around Rs 1 crore The house that they have provided us would fetch barely R50R60 lakh considering the location and the fact that these are MHADA or SRA houses So our source of income is also lost We arenrsquot getting market value monetary compensation for it and we have ended up with a house that canrsquot get us enoughrdquo said BadadelsquoFurther than promisedrsquoWhile the residents were promised rehabilitation within a 25 km radius these families have been given houses at quite faraway locations ldquoI have two rooms beside each other in Haaji Noorani However one house allotted to us is at Antop Hill and another one is at Hindmata about 5 km apart The Hindmata house is 4 km away from our original location and Antop Hill is almost 7 km away How are we supposed to managerdquo questioned Manish ShirodkarSharing how she would face problems in reaching her college another resident Ashwini Wagh told midday ldquoAt present I spend just Rs 30 one way by cab I can even walk if I wish to But if I shift to the new home I will have to spend double the amount of time and moneyrdquo The 13 families facing issues have formally approached MMRDA seeking alternative accommodations that meet the conditions promised prior to the demolition However officials have reportedly stated that no other transit homes are available and that residents must accept the allotted flatsldquoWhen we first went they misbehaved and rudely told us that we had to accept what we had been allotted Then when we approached officials in Mantralaya they just gave verbal assurances Later MMRDA officials asked us to come for a meeting on Friday We donrsquot know what the outcome of that meeting will berdquo said Badade So far none of the 23 families has taken possession of the new housesVoicesSuhas Badade shop ownerI would earn at least Rs 70000 per month But after the footfall reduced I was unable to earn even Rs 10000 I was forced to rent out the space to a scrap dealer who pays me Rs 15000 per month Now once they demolish this building and this shop goes down even the Rs 15000 I earn will be lostMala Gupta shop ownerThey have given us a house in Wadala in exchange for this shop This shop is our only source of income That house is of no use to us They are taking away our source of income How do they expect us to survive How do we get food when we move into that houseAshwini Wagh college studentAt present I spend just Rs 30 one way by cab I can even walk if I wish to But if I shift to the new home I will have to spend double the amount of time and money