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During the encroachment demolishing drives, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) staff has been allegedly been destroying plants in the premises and on pavements, complain environmentalists.
NatConnect Director B N Kumar has complained to the NMMC Commissioner Kailash Shinde and the City Engineer Shirish Aradwad and requested them to instruct the demolition staff not to spoil the greenery. “This is patently wrong and what harm have the plants done,” said Kumar.
Kumar said that City Engineer Aradwad messaged Kumar informing that he will instruct the staff not to touch the plants. “Some of these are full grown plants and the NMMC staff destroyed even the pots where the greenery is being grown,” said Vishnu Joshi of Parsik Greens. Shopkeepers and hoteliers who want to keep their areas clean and green are thoroughly disappointed with this act by the municipal staff, Joshi added.
The authorities can certainly take action against alleged encroachers by following a proper process, but they are not expected to go berserk like this, attacking the plants mercilessly, opined Kumar. “The civic staff could have just asked the concerned shopkeeper to move the plants away if they are causing any disturbance. It is heartless anti-environment action,” added Kumar.
Meanwhile, Airoli MLA Ganesh Naik said the monsoon shades that the family restaurant promoters built need not be touched. The owners can be asked to remove the shades after the rains.
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Naik said he spoke to the NMMC Commissioner after a delegation of Navi Mumbai Hotel Owners Association met him to complain against the demolitions that are being carried out even after midnight when guests are asleep in their rooms.
Naik said the authorities should act against those involved in unscrupulous activities but the genuine small and medium businesses should not be victimised.
A hotelier at CBD Belapur said the heavy porcelain machines were mounted on the pavement at 2.30 AM and broke the iron gates of a hotel premises, very close to the Mahanagar Gas point. “This was a dangerous action and could have led to a major fire accident had the machines broken the gas pipeline,” the hotelier said.
The association president Dayanand Shetty and secretary Mahesh S Shetty have also sent out emails to the Chief Minister and Deputy CM bitterly complaining against the destruction of hotel and restaurant properties in the raids past midnight.
Meanwhile, under the series ‘Shabd Yudh, Aatank Ke Virudh’, (war of words against terrorism), Kumar has been felicitated with the ‘Saraswat Award’ under the Environment category for the various initiatives and campaigns he takes up for the city. Arvind Sharma ‘Rahi’, chairman of Shruti Samvaad Sahitya Kala Academy which instituted the annual awards, said attack on the environment is no less serious than a terror attack. Hence, the literature awards committee has decided to include the environment as a serious subject for the Saraswat Awards, which is a National award.
