Malad house collapse: 159 Malwani chawls get notices, locals say many are legal

Deen Mahmood holds the notice, as he stands outside his house at MHB colony in Malwani

Acting on HC's order following a fatal building collapse, MHADA served notices to each house owner of the MHB colony in Malwani, Malad, for illegal construction. However, 200 of them said they never made any structural changes to their house, and now fear legal action. Residents say there was no survey conducted.

An illegally constructed ground-plus-one residential structure in Malwani collapsed a fortnight ago, killing 12 people and injuring seven others. Following which, the high court ordered an in-depth enquiry and sought a report before June 24. The HC formed a committee for the enquiry.

Mehmood Lambe with the notice he received. He says he moved to this house 40 years ago and it is still in the same condition

The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) also started an enquiry and sent notices to each and every house in 159 chawls of the Maharashtra Housing Board, sources said. As each chawl comprises 16 houses, notices were served to over 2,500 owners.

Residents, who received notices despite having no illegal structural changes, said MHADA officials never visited these chawls to verify the legalities of the structures.

The notice reads, "They increased the floor and structure of the room illegally. With immediate effect, they have to demolish the structure and submit a report to the MHADA. If anyone fails to do it they have to face a legal case."

‘Not a single change'

Speaking to mid-day, Jawad Choudhary said, "We never built an additional floor. But, a few days back we received a notice stating that we have made illegal structural changes. Not a single official from MHADA visited our house for any kind of survey. They should conduct surveys before sending such notices."

Mehmood Lambe said he moved to his room, next to his father Ibrahim Lambe's house, 40 years ago and it is still in the same condition. "We earlier lived at the Bandra Chawl. MHADA had shifted us to Malwani. We are now very scared. Where will we go if they will demolish our house?"

Another resident, Deen Mahmood, said, "We don't have another room. We never added another floor or made any structural changes. Our house is legal. MHADA gave us notice without conducting a survey. MHADA is committing illegalities in order to follow the high court's order."

‘Seeking legal suggestion'

Firoz Shaikh, the chairman of Gaikwad Nagar Owners' Association, said they will drag MHADA to court if needed, and suggestions are being taken on the legal aspect in the matter. "There is great negligence on the part of MHADA officials. They couriered notices to everyone without surveying the area. Had the officials visited, they would have known who the violators were," he said.

Kailash Bahur, a clerk at MHADA's Malad division, told mid-day he was not aware of the matter. Rajan Patil, junior engineer of MHADA's Goregaon and Malad division, did not reply to mid-day's messages and calls.

159
No. of chawls where MHADA has sent notices