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Aarey Colony to be declared a slum rehabilitation area by Maharashtra
The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) plans to declare 32,310 sq ft in Aarey Colony as a slum rehabilitation area despite a Bombay High Court (HC) order on construction restriction.
The area is part of the 66-acre CTS no 1, owned by the state dairy development department.
SRA has also decided to declare similar areas in Malad (E) and Dindoshi. Satish Lokhande, SRA CEO, told the media that they have issued the notice inviting objections and suggestions.
Zoru Bhathena, an activist, informed the media that the construction in Aarey would require HC permission.
Pointing out that the area is part of the eco-sensitive zone of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), advocate Godfrey Pimenta said that the process violates the HC order. The SRA may claim it is not construction, but it is a process that would eventually allow construction.
Pimenta added that in the new Development Plan 2034, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has earmarked 43 hectares (107.5 acres) to rehabilitate slum dwellers and tribals from Aarey and SGNP.
Advocate Zaman Ali said the HC had disallowed all SRA schemes in a 2003 public interest litigation (PIL) by NGO Citispace.
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