12 October,2017 08:06 PM IST | Mumbai | Faisal Tandel
Project affected people from Navi Mumbai have started protesting against the authorities and opposing the ongoing work on the Navi Mumbai International Airport over broken promises
Project affected people from Navi Mumbai have started protesting against the authorities and opposing the ongoing work on the Navi Mumbai International Airport over broken promises. The villagers have alleged that the authorities had assured them basic facilities before work on the airport had started. But, work has already begun, with the villagers not receiving any of the promised benefits.
Today, people from four villages from Ulwe will protest and stop the work. They said owing to the hills being blasted, cracks have developed in their houses.
The Navi Mumbai International Airport is under construction at Kopar-Panvel in Raigad district. The airport covers an area of 2,320 hectares, of which 1,200 hectares belongs to the 3,500 projected affected families from 10 different villages.
As the villagers' demands were rejected by CIDCO, the 10 villages formed a committee comprising MLAs, ex-MPs and ex-MLAs who started co-ordinating with CIDCO.
Nata Patil, president of the International Airport Committee, said, "In 2013, we were assured we would get three times the land we owned. We were also told we would be given one-and-a-half FSI and R1,000 per sq foot as we were project affected. Later, they claimed that no matter how big our houses were, each family would get only 700 sq foot," Patil said.
He claimed they had even met CM Devendra Fadnavis in 2016 who had assured that all their demands would be met.
Patil said although the authorities have shown them a new place to move into, it does not have even basic facilities like water, roads, nullahs, lights or schools.
Mohan Ninave, Public Relations Officer, CIDCO, said, "All the demands of the villagers are being looked into. We only want them to cooperate with us."
