by THO
Mumbai: Just like the 2019 assembly elections, a triangular contest is unfolding in the Vile Parle assembly constituency. Back then, the three main contenders were the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Congress, and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). This time, the Maha Vikas Aghadi has allotted the constituency to the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) instead of the Congress in its seat-sharing pact.
Parag Alavani, a two-term sitting BJP MLA, will face Sandeep Naik of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Juilee Shende from the MNS. The Marathi-speaking population, numbering around 130,000, hold the key to the constituency, followed by around 70,000 Gujaratis and Rajasthanis, nearly 40,000 north Indians, 25,000 south Indians, 20,000 Muslims and 13,000 Christians.
Just like the 2019 elections, one of the major issues in the constituency is the air funnel zone around Mumbai airport, which has stalled redevelopment projects due to height restrictions for buildings along the flight path. The problem is compounded since the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) has two runways. “Always, during the election season, the incumbent MLA promises to resolve the air funnel issue but has repeatedly failed the citizens,” Naik and Shende told Hindustan Times.
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Residents, as well as developers, have been demanding a solution to this issue for at least a couple of decades. “We have suggested that buildings be allowed to be redeveloped, and the builder be issued with Transferable Development Rights (TDR) to make the project viable. This is the easiest way to resolve the deadlock and ensure people don’t risk their lives in the old structures,” said Dominic Romell, president of CREDAI-MCHI, a real estate industry body for the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).
Despite the BJP being in power at both the Centre and in the state since 2014, the issue continues to be unresolved. Asked why this was the case, Alavani said, “Policy decisions take time. My suggestions on relaxation in premium for a redevelopment project to become viable were included by the civic body in DCPR 2034 for other areas, but not concerning the air funnel.” DCPR refers to the Development Control and Promotion Regulations, the city’s development plan.
Naik, however, called it “policy paralysis”, adding that nearly half of Vile Parle’s 275,325 voters are slum dwellers and nothing has been done to improve their living conditions. Nearly 130,000 people live in slum areas such as Shashtri Nagar, Agripada, Ashok Nagar, Bamanwada, Sahar Village, and Chimatpada. Some of the slum tenements are also located on airport land.
“It is up to the airport’s owner to redevelop these slums and provide homes in-situ,” said Alavani. “The airport operator has its own master plan. When the survey was being done to demolish the slums and provide them with alternate accommodation in Kurla, I ensured they weren’t moved elsewhere.”
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The other issues affecting this constituency include encroachment of open plots, rise in petty crime, lack of public hospitals providing quality treatment, and poorly maintained open spaces. “There is a plot in Marol taken over by the water tanker mafia and illegal garages. This has been happening for years now,” said Marol resident Kaustubh Bhagwat. Additionally, illegal parking has only increased in the area and no action is taken by the authorities, according to Marol Citizens Voice, a citizen forum.
