Navi Mumbai: Panvel MLA Prashant Thakur has urged Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to direct City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) for the immediate implementation of the government decision dated September 23, 2024, regarding the regularization of houses built out of necessity by project-affected residents in Navi Mumbai.
In his memorandum to the Chief Minister, Thakur highlighted that for the Navi Mumbai project, land was acquired from 95 villages across Thane and Raigad districts, including the talukas of Thane, Panvel, and Uran.
However, while doing so, the original boundaries of these villages were retained, and a village expansion plan should have been implemented to accommodate future population growth before utilizing the remaining land for the project. Due to this oversight, many project-affected residents built houses near their villages to meet their residential and livelihood needs.
Despite multiple representations from local representatives, the government was compelled to take a decision on this matter after years of follow-up. The first such decision was taken on January 22, 2010, but it was deemed unsatisfactory. Subsequently, after continued efforts, revised government resolutions were issued on February 25, 2022, and December 7, 2022.
However, these too had certain shortcomings. After further appeals by local representatives and residents, the government issued a revised decision on September 23, 2024, allowing the regularization of structures built before February 25, 2022.
As per the latest decision, lands under such constructions are to be regularized and leased to the project-affected individuals and their heirs. However, CIDCO has yet to act on this directive. Instead, it has been issuing notices for action against houses built before February 25, 2022. Thakur has termed this move unjust to the project-affected residents.
He further pointed out that there is no clarity on the steps CIDCO is taking to implement the regularization decision, creating confusion among residents and local representatives. The government resolution aimed at providing relief to the project-affected families should have been implemented without delay, but CIDCO's inaction is causing distress.
Therefore, the BJP legislator has strongly demanded that CIDCO be directed to immediately implement the government decision dated September 23, 2024, to ensure justice for the project-affected residents and provide them with much-needed relief.
