Mumbai News: Chandivali's Disputed Civic Structure Found Illegal As Fire NOC, IOD And CC Not Secured Before Construction

Mumbai: The disputed civic structure in Chandivali, built on the land reserved for public amenities, has been constructed without necessary approvals from the fire department, making the structure illegal, revealed the documents accessed by The Free Press Journal.

On August 12, 2024, The Free Press Journal had reported that Chandivali residents had staged a protest against a suspicious construction on a xxx sq. mtr. plot, handed over to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) by a developer to develop public amenities, without consultation with the residents.

Although the residents protested, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) went ahead with the construction and built a ground-plus-one structure, the purpose of which still remains unknown.

As the structure still lies unused, it has been revealed that the construction was carried out without a provisional no-objection certificate (NOC) from the fire department. On June 9, the assistant divisional fire officer rejected the NOC application citing that the proposal falls under the category of commercial building.

Moreover, a letter from MHADA’s Mumbai Slum Improvement Board to the chief fire officer dated June 11 sought the provisional NOC for the “proposed construction work of a vachanalaya building”, after the construction has been completed.

The documents accessed by The Free Press Journal on BMC’s AutoDCR website reveal that the layout plan has still not been approved and it still lacks intimation of disapproval (IOD) and commencement certificate (CC), both of which are mandatory to be obtained before commencing construction.

The building permission requirement has only cleared the initial survey remarks and is stuck on the scrutiny level as the application has been “returned for compliances of further requisitions.”

While all these steps are to be followed before commencement of the construction, BMC’s L ward and MHADA have reversed the process by completing the construction first and then applying for the necessary approvals. These unfulfilled criterias violate the development control and promotion regulation (DCPR) guidelines framed by BMC.

The Free Press Journal contacted assistant municipal commissioner of L ward Dhanaji Herlekar, who passed the buck on MHADA. While he seemed to be ignorant about which public amenity will be developed there, he said, “The construction has been carried out by MHADA and it needs to take care of all the necessary approvals. We have given the necessary approvals from our side.”

The residents of Chandivali, who had earlier staged protests against the construction, expressed resentment over the lack of approvals. Mandeep Singh Makkar, founder of Chandivali Citizens Welfare Association (CCWA), said that the safety and structural stability of the public utility building have been compromised as i-beams have been used instead of a reinforced cement concrete (RCC) structure.

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“Residents of the area have been demanding a children’s playground and have been protesting against this illegal structure. Ironically, this structure in a locality of high-rise buildings has been constructed by the slum improvement board. It appears to be a clear case of political land grab, where politicians misuse public funds to encroach on public utility spaces for their political party offices.”