Raze illegal huts at Wadala mangrove forest: HC to state
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) has directed the state forest department to demolish 250 shanties located within a mangrove forest at Wadala, terming them illegal.
The 11-hectare reserved forest along Salt Pan Road near Karbala Masjid at Wadala is home to sparse mangrove trees and salt pans, according to the state mangrove cell. In September 2018, the HC had ordered the preservation of all mangroves in Maharashtra.
On February 6, a bench of justice VL Achliya and justice RM Borde issued final orders stating the structures were illegal and on land notified as reserved forest. The order was published on the HC’S website on Tuesday.
The bench was hearing a petition filed by a group, Veer Jeejamata Rahivashi Seva Sangh, which represents more than 1,000 people residing inside this forest. The petitioners argued destroying the shanties was against ‘Right to Life’ (Article 21 of the Constitution), and that they had been residing there since January 2011.
The group was also seeking protection under the slum rehabilitation policy of the state.
“The government resolution that prescribes the scheme for slum rehabilitation is applicable only for slum dwellers settled on government and other lands. It is not applicable to the petitioners, who are settled on the land notified as reserve forest,” read the HC order, adding that encroachments had significantly increased from 2005 to 2018.
Mangrove cell officials said the demolition of the shanties had been held up since May last year, when the encroachers had managed to get a stay. “Now, the stay has been lifted and we will carry out the demolition soon,” said N Vasudevan, additional principal chief conservator of forest, state mangrove cell.
During the last demolition drive, in May 2018, a politician had intervened and supported the residents to file a case in court, said Makarand Ghodke, assistant conservator of forest, state mangrove cell.
“We filed several affidavits proving the land was a reserved forest. The court took cognisance of the scale of violations after repeated offences related to tree hacking and rise in shanties was recorded over the past two months.”