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Mumbai: The demolition of the illegal structures in
the township of Ulhasnagar is all set to restart any
time now. The demolitions were put on hold due to Ulhasnagar
Municipal Corporation’s (UMC) law and order apprehensions.
The first round of demolitions, almost two weeks ago,
was followed by sporadic incidents of violence. The
corporation’s new commissioner, D.S. Patil, has
requested additional police force to check aggression
and rioting. Thane Police Commissioner, D. Sivanandan
has endorsed the additional task force to be deployed
in the town. The bandobast for the demolition drive
is complete according to Sivanandan. At least 20,000
policemen have already been positioned in the sensitive
areas of the town to curb trouble.
Rahul Palace, a five-story building, apparently, will
be the first out of the 855 unlawful structures to be
brought down. The Bombay High Court has enforced the
demolition drive on the UMC. The distressed residents
had moved the Supreme Court for intervention, however,
in vain. Even the state government has visibly washed
its hands off the issue, leaving the residents in misery.
The demolitions will render at least one lakh people
homeless, who have been residing in the areas for more
than past twenty years.
The Bombay HC had issued the interim order for the demolitions
in April 2005, in response to a PIL filed by Hari Tanwani
and Nanomal Samtani. On December 7, 2005, the Bombay
HC had directed the Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation
(UMC) to proceed with the flattening of unauthorized
structures as per its earlier orders. It also directed
the UMC to submit the report by January 10, 2006.
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