Maha CM Uddhav Thackeray directs BMC to raze illegal structures

Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray wants the BMC to raze all unauthorised structures and has directed it to work without fear and without succumbing to any pressure. Thackeray conducted a meeting with BMC authorities on Wednesday where he ordered the administration to take up the issue on a war footing. In recent months, various senior Shiv Sena leaders, including Thackeray’s personal assistant Milind Narvekar, have been accused of conducting unauthorised structures. Narvekar even razed his bungalow that was coming up on the Dapoli coast in Ratnagiri district after there were allegations of it being unauthorised. State transport minister Anil Parab was accused of building an unauthorised office on a Mhada layout open space in Bandra (East) but denied it. Mhada later released an apology to Parab. BJP leader Kirit Somaiya, who has brought up the claimed unauthorised structures by Sena leaders, told the media that in the case of Parab’s Dapoli resort in Ratnagiri district, the government has admitted before the Lokayukta that it is unauthorised but has done nothing to raze it. Thackeray pointed to the excessive unauthorised dumping of debris in the eastern and western suburbs and asked for electing squads to stop it. While praising the administration for its commendable work during the Covid-19 pandemic and for being trailblazers in building the Mumbai model, Thackeray said that the focus now should be on enhancing civic amenities in the city. The goal is to make the city beautiful with high-quality facilities, and for this, roads, pavements, dividers, parks and gardens must be made proper and beautiful. Image SourceAlso read: BBMP identifies 503 structurally unsafe buildings in Bengaluru