Mumbai: 16 Nov 201
Mahul residents who are protesting for their right to life and safe housing since last 20 days were assured that they will be given temporary rehabilitation at Kurla HDIL by Housing Minister on 12th November but they have not got any response from the government till date. The Residents have been trying to meet the Chief Minister since a year now, in order to place their grievances in front of him and request to shift them to a better and safe place. But the Chief Minister has never shown up. so Today, thousands of residents desperately waiting for the Chief Minister’s response on the issue wrote a letter to him requesting to shift them to the Kurla HDIL. They took out a rally from Ambedkar Nagar Vidyavihar (East) to post office, demanding the same.
Four days before, the residents had a meeting with the housing minister in which he promised to meet the Chief Mminister Devendra Fadnavis for discussing the proposal of the residents regarding shifting them to Kurla HDIL. The Government was supposed to take a decision within four days. And today is the fourth day, but there is still no response from the Government. Meanwhile, the Mahul SRA has seen 7 deaths in the last 19 days. These deaths are mainly due to tuberculosis, which was diagnosed after they started living in Mahul.
In 2017, residents from the Tansa pipeline area were shifted to Mahul, Which is one of the most ‘critically polluted regions’ of Mumbai. The citizens started their protest under the banner of ‘Jeevan Bachao Andolan’ on 28th October 2018, after the Government failed to act on the directions of the Bombay High Court, given out in August 2018, asking the Government to provide alternative rehabilitation to the people living in Mahul. Every family staying in Mahul have reported deaths and continued illnesses like TB, Cancer, tumors etc., among their family members since they started living there. Over 100 people have already lost their lives while living in Mahul. The people have termed this as a mass genocide by the Government. A couple of days back, the children of Mahul protested on Children’s day, demanding their right to childhood, against this organised loot of their future, of the future of the environment, and the future of the planet which in fact belongs to them as future citizens and those who are yet to be born and inhabit the Earth.
The Mahul residents have pledged to continue their struggle despite all odds, till their demands are met.