18 December,2020 07:28 AM IST | Mumbai | A correspondent
The blaze at City Centre mall had triggered a 56-hour firefighting operation. Pic/Ashish Raje
Nearly two months after a huge fire tore through the Orchid City Centre mall at Mumbai Central, triggering a 56-hour firefighting operation, one of the longest in the city, the BMC has demolished more than 700 unauthorised shops on the premises.
While there was no loss of life due to the blaze on October 22, the fire brigade had rescued 300 people from the site. The fire had exposed the presence of too many illegal units at the shopping centre.
Officials from D ward completed the five-day exercise on Thursday amid police presence. The fire had broken out on the second floor of the mall. Officials said they have razed illegal shops on the ground and first floors. It is one of the major demolition drives in the recent past. Sources said about 1,000 shops had come up inside the mall without BMC permission. Prashant Gaikwad, assistant commissioner of D ward was unavailable for comment.
The fire had sparked heated arguments at a meeting of the BMC's Standing Committee, its key decision-making body, with members from all parties criticising the Mumbai Fire Brigade and the civic administration for their lapses and allowing illegal construction inside the mall.
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In November, the BMC had told the Bombay High Court, which was hearing an application of four shop owners, that it would not allow the mall to be reopened until a complete inspection. Citing a 2006 plan, the petitioners had claimed that 344 shops were to be constructed at City Centre but 1,233 shops ultimately came up.
Also read: City Centre Mall's Firefighting System Was Non-Functional, Fire Dept Tells BMC Standing Committee
Rais Shaikh, a Samajwadi Party MLA, and the residents of the building adjacent to the mall had alleged that there was illegal construction and the BMC had not taken any action despite their repeated complaints.
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