Mumbai: Upset with the indifference of the political class towards their pressing problem, a large number of residents of Govandi (east) have decided to press the None Of The Above (NOTA) in the assembly elections scheduled for November 20. The affected area forms a part of the Anushakti Nagar assembly constituency.
For the past over four years, residents of Neelkant Gardens, Orchid and other buildings housing middle-class residents have been complaining about acute air pollution caused by two ready mix concrete (RMC) plants in their area, but in vain.
A large number of residents are facing acute breathing problems and have submitted over a thousand medical certificates to the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) and other authorities, but there has been no response from any of the agencies. They also approached the local M.P. Anil Desai and other politicians with a request to help shut down the plants, but all they have received is empty promises.
Said Shankar Iyer, chairman of Neelkanth Garden Cooperative Housing Society, which has over 300 members: "We have knocked on the doors of every conceivable authority. The officials concerned only promised to look into the problem, but did nothing to deal with the problem."
Earlier they were being operated even late into the night. But after complaints to the police the plants are not run beyond 10 p.m. But throughout the day and till late evening fine particles of cement concrete form a smog over a vast stretch of the area making breathing very difficult. Earlier there were three plants, but one of them shut down.
One of the plant is right behind Tridhaatu builder's new project and the residents are having a tough time. It is not clear how the MCGM sanctioned a residential complex cheek by jowl with a ready mix cement concrete plant. A local politician took up the issue and went on fast for three days, but even that did not help.
The residents have now worked out a twin strategy; one is to opt for the NOTA button during the assembly elections and the other is to file a public interest petition in Bombay high court. In fact, the PIL has been already filed by an NGO Earth through advocate Vikram Sutare and the matter is likely to come up before the court after the Deepavali vacation.
Several housing societies are likely to file intervene applications in this case. "Initially, a writ petition was filed, but since the interest of a large number of people is involved it was converted into a PIL at the instance of the court," Sutare told FPJ on Saturday.
The petition has made JSW Green Cement Pvt Ltd, Shri Lalit Nagpal Ready Mix Concrete and Dev Infra, the MPCB, MCGM and others are respondents to the case. Dev Infra has suspended its operations, but other plants are being run to full capacity.
