Shiv Sena (UBT) trying to mislead people about Dharavi redevelopment project: MP Rahul Shewale

Mumbai: Shiv Sena MP Rahul Shevale on Monday accused the Shiv Sena (UBT) and other parties of allegedly trying to mislead people about the Dharavi Redevelopment Project by spreading false propaganda.

Addressing a press conference, Shewale claimed that the Sena (UBT) was trying to delay the project by talking about things that were technically not feasible or wouldn't happen.

The Shiv Sena leader assured that the Mahayuti government, comprising the Shiv Sena, BJP and NCP, is committed to redeveloping Dharavi as desired by its residents, and work on the project will commence soon.

The government has already declared that all eligible people from Dharavi will be rehabilitated in the same area, while the ineligible residents will be housed nearby, Shewale said.

The Maharashtra cabinet has cleared a proposal related to the project, under which 283.40 acres of saltpan lands in Mumbai will be taken from the Union government on a 99-year lease for rehabilitation purposes.

The land allotment for the project was done in two phases, under which land in the eastern suburb of Mulund was handed over in the first phase and 360 acres of saltpan land in the second phase, the MP said.

Refuting claims of the opposition parties and environmentalists, Shewale said as per the Mumbai Development Plan 2034, which was approved in 2018, the site of the saltpan is not environmentally sensitive, and permission was already granted for construction on it.

The state government has reserved the saltpan land for affordable housing projects, he said.

"When the Development Plan 2034 was prepared by the then government and the saltpan land was reserved for affordable housing, why didn't this question about environment arise at that time?" the Shiv Sena leader said.

He further pointed out that there was no issue about environment when land in Kanjurmarg was sought for the Metro project, and claimed that the land of Bandra Kurla Complex, which is close to Uddhav Thackeray's residence Matoshree, was a creek and marshy land.

Opposition parties and some environmentalists have alleged that the decision to hand over the Central government's saltpan site in Mumbai for the redevelopment project will impact the city's environment.

In July last year, the Maharashtra government formally awarded the 259-hectare Dharavi redevelopment project to an Adani group firm. The multi-crore project to be executed by an SPV involves rebuilding the Dharavi slum sprawl, Asia's largest, in central Mumbai.