Mumbai: Kandivali's Growels 101 Mall Illegally Operates Parking On BMC Land For Over A Decade, Alleges Complaint

Mumbai: A recent complaint to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has highlighted a serious irregularity by the Growels 101 Mall in Kandivali of illegally operating a commercial parking facility on the plot that the corporation has been demanding to take over under the Development Plan. The BMC had asked the mall authorities to stop the usage of the plot for parking purposes in 2011 but the mall continues to charge people on BMC’s land till now.

Shishir Vivekanand Shetty, social activist and founder of Lokhandwala Residents Association Kandivali, has been demanding the release of the Development Plot and Recreational Ground plot from the Growels 101 Mall for the BMC to build a proposed road from Malad to Borivali. The road proposed under DP 1991 and 2034 will be very crucial for the people commuting between the two points and is looked upon to ease the traffic congestion at the Akurli subway in Kandivali (E). However, even after BMC’s multiple notices to the mall, the DPRG plot has not been handed over by the mall authorities.

Recently, replying to an RTI application sought by Shetty, the executive engineer of the building proposal department said that there is no record of permission to the mall for the parking service. Following the RTI, Shetty wrote a complaint to the chief engineer of BMC’s DP department and highlighted that the mall has been using the RG plot as a Pay & Park facility for its visitors and collects parking facilitation charges from them. Shetty traced back documents from 2012 where in a letter the BMC said that it had asked the mall in 2011 to stop its parking business.

The letter of deputy chief engineer of the Building Proposal to the chief engineer DP on March 26, 2012 stated, “The office had informed to the architect or developer vide letter dated June 28, 2011 to stop the usage of DPRG plot for parking purpose and also initiate to ensure the process of handing over the said plot to MCGM forthwith.”

However, after more than 13 years since the BMC’s notice, neither has the mall stopped its parking business and nor has it handed over the plot to the BMC. Instead, the mall has concretised the plot which was proposed as a garden under the DP 1991 and 2034. Moreover, the mall has been charging Rs. 30 for two-wheelers, Rs. 50 for four-wheelers for every three hours and Rs. 10 for every additional hour, while Rs. 300 are charged for overnight parking.

Talking to The Free Press Journal, Shetty said, “We all have been paying these parking charges ever since the mall started its operations but the 2012 document clearly states that the mall was informed to stop using the RG plot for pay and park. Our concern is also about the BMC which has been sleeping for 13 years as it did not even check whether its order was followed by the mall. Even if the parking facility is allowed, it must be free of charge or the charges should be collected only by the BMC.”

However, Santush Kumar Pandde, chief operations officer of the mall claimed that the mall is eligible to collect parking charges on the land they have not handed over to the BMC for over 13 years. “We are eligible to charge the mall visitors for providing parking facilities in the mall premises like every other mall in Mumbai. No permission is required to obtain from the BMC for a private land. With reference to handing over the DP road, it’s still under review with higher authorities. Until then, we have given access to the general commuters from our property and it has no connection with parking,” he said.

Talking to The Free Press Journal, a senior officer from the building proposal department confirmed that the mall has not handed over the DPRG plot for over 13 years and according to the order of the municipal commissioner, BMC has stopped allowing any new permissions to the mall.